Faith, Trust, and Happy Dust
by cakelover2468
Summary: In which a strange flying boy crashes into Lucy's bedroom, Captain Gray can't find the girl who saved him, Yukino runs away from the ball, Romeo can't say he's in love, and a million other things. Nalu, Gruvia, Gale, Jerza, Rowen, Miraxus, etc.
1. Second Star to the Right

**I love Fairy Tail, and I love fairy tales, so this was bound to happen sooner or later.**

_All you need is a little faith, trust, and oh yeah – pixie dust! – someone_

Once upon a time, Lucy Heartfillia's life was perfect.

Layla and Jude adored their daughter to no end, showering down upon her love and affection like no other child had received. Layla had been diagnosed with a disease that prevented her from having any more children, so she was determined to make sure that the one she had would grow up happy and strong.

And grow up happy and strong she did. Lucy flourished like a beautiful flower, sparkling and bringing joy to the entire household. No other child loved or was loved as she was.

But then, as it so often does, tragedy struck.

Layla finally fell victim to the disease that had been gripping her for twelve long years, and on the worst morning of Lucy's entire life, she passed away.

Lucy's happiness was shattered after that. Without its mistress, the Heartfillia mansion grew cold and dreary, and everyone was too busy trying to take care of things to notice poor, broken-hearted Lucy.

Jude tried to take care of his daughter, but every time he looked at her, he was reminded of his beloved wife. In the end, he succumbed to his grief and locked himself inside his room, where he would remain for the next four years.

Lucy was relocated to the attic, as her father wished, for he could not bear to see her face. It was much more cramped than she was used to, but Lucy hardly noticed this. Her mother was gone, and her father did not want to see her. All trace of the beautiful flower she had once been vanished, to be replaced by one that was wilted and drooping. It was painful to watch, but barely anyone took notice.

And this is where we find Miss Lucy Heartfillia four years later, on the evening of her sixteenth birthday…

xXx

"Princess, I've come to bring you your dinner."

Virgo, Lucy's favorite maid, knocked on the door of her bedroom. "There is cake!"

The door flew open, and there stood Lucy, in a sweatshirt and jeans. She smiled.

"Thanks, Virgo. What kind of cake is it?"

"Your favorite, of course. Chocolate."

Lucy's eyes lit up. "You're the best, Virgo! Thank you!"

"It's my pleasure to serve you, princess. Will there be punishment?"

"Wha – No! No, you can go. I'm good. Thanks for the cake!"

Virgo looked almost disappointed as she left. Her maid's love of punishment was something that baffled Lucy to no end, but she had learned to let it slide.

Having no one to tell her what to do, Lucy dug into the cake first and melted with pleasure. "Chocolate," she sighed dreamily.

She laid the plate of food on her desk and sat down, picking up her fork, which she instantly dropped. Lucy sighed again, an exasperated one this time, and ducked under the table to get it.

Her hand brushed against the worn cover of a book.

Lucy froze, her heart in her mouth. Hands shaking, she pulled out the book from under the bed. The book she'd stashed down there so that she wouldn't have to think about it.

_Fairy Tails, _the cover read, a typo that Lucy had never understood, but was etched in her memory forever. She hugged the book to her chest, swallowing her tears.

The book was her last present from her mother, the only thing of hers that Lucy had been able to keep. The rest was locked away in a closet somewhere, because Jude couldn't bear to see them. Just like Lucy.

She opened the book, and it fell open to a well-read page, the story that Lucy had loved most of all as a child – Peter Pan. She traced the silhouette of the flying boy, remembering all those nights she spent reading it with Layla. Against her will, a tear splashed onto the page.

The whole situation would have ended with Lucy sobbing her heart out if a boy with pink hair hadn't crashed right through her window at that very moment.

"OW!" he cried. "Happy, you really have to work on those landings! You can't let the Happy dust wear off before I land!"

"That's because you don't use enough, Natsu," another voice grumbled, and to Lucy's extreme shock and terror, a _blue cat _popped out from under the boy and _spoke._

"You really shouldn't make so many bets with Gray, you know. Twenty grains of Happy dust is barely enough to get you off Fairy Tail Island!"

Lucy would've screamed, but her throat was closed tight from shock.

"Wh-Who are you?!" she squeaked, two octaves higher than her regular voice.

"Oh!" The boy jumped to his feet and saluted for some reason. "I'm Natsu, and this is Happy! Say, have you seen my shadow around anywhere? I really hate that Kageyama guy. Ever since I beat him up, my shadow's been detaching itself over and over again. It's a pain. Who're you?"

Lucy stared at him. "You have pink hair."

"_Salmon_," he corrected. "But yeah, I guess it's around the pink region. I'll ask again, have you seen my shadow?"

"Your cat _talks," _Lucy breathed, her brain still stuck on the fact that a boy and his cat had just _flown _into her _room, _and that this situation was suspiciously reminiscent of a certain fairy tale that she loved.

"Yes," he agreed, sounding slightly irritated, "but I really need my shadow, so for the third time, have you seen it?"

Lucy silently shook her head. She wasn't sure she had the ability to speak anymore.

"Well, I'm sure it's in here somewhere – GOTCHA!" And to Lucy's even bigger shock (she hadn't known it was possible) he tackled a dark, squirming shape on her bedroom floor.

"There we go!" he declared happily. "All right, now that that's done, let's go – "

"I could sew it on for you!"

Lucy clapped a hand over her mouth. She hadn't even known why she blurted it out, but she knew that she was experiencing something magical, and there was no way she was going to let this boy leave before explaining some things to her.

Natsu stared at her. "Sew it on?"

"Y-Yeah. So it wouldn't get loose anymore."

He continued to stare for a few more seconds before breaking into a huge grin. "That would be a huge help! Thanks – wait, what was your name again?"

"Lucy," she replied, still not believing it. "L-Let me go find my needle and thread, and I'll sew it on for you."

"Cool, thanks, Luigi!"

"It's Lucy! How did you already forget it?!"

"Oh, right, Lucy, Lucy. Got it." He smiled. "Hear that, Happy! My shadow won't get loose anymore! I wish I'd thought of that before!"

Lucy retrieved her needle and thread, hands still shaking, but this time from excitement. She had Natsu sit on the bed, while she sat cross-legged on the floor.

"So," she said, biting off a bit of thread. "Where did you come from?"

"From Fairy Tail Island!" was the cheerful reply. "It's a really cool place where no one ever grows old. It's usually awesome, but you gotta watch out for this pirate dude named Gray, he's a jerk. It's full of fun stuff."

"Really? It must be great there."

"Yeah, it is! Say…" He looked at her, a grin spreading across his face. "Would you like to go?"

"Go? T-To Fairy Tail Island?" Lucy echoed, eyes wide. "Me?"

"Yeah. It doesn't look like you've had much of a life here. I mean, what with your dad and all…"

"H-How did you know about that?!"

"I've been watching you. Sometimes at night, you'll take that book, and you'll read out loud. I like to listen." He nodded to her book of Fairy Tails. "I can't read very well, but I really like stories. By the way, sometimes I have to leave early, and I don't get to hear the endings. What exactly happened to Snow White, anyway, like, after the apple?"

"Oh! Well, the prince kissed her, and they lived happily ever after!"

"Really? That's great! What about Cinderella?"

"He found her glass slipper and used it to find her. And they lived happily ever after."

"Cool! What about Robin Hood?"

"Well, he and Maid Marian got married, and Prince John was defeated in the end."

"And Hamlet?" he asked eagerly.

Oh.

Oh dear.

"Well. Um," Lucy stated, wondering how she was supposed to tell Natsu this. "Uh, well… Hamlet…died."

A gasp.

"And Ophelia?" he asked, eyes wide.

"Um, she died too."

"What?! What about Polonius?"

"Oh, uh, he met the same fate."

"Demetrius? The king?"

"They died too."

Natsu's mouth hung open, and Lucy thought fast. "But everyone else lives happily ever after!"

He sighed in relief. "Okay, well, that's good. Are you done with my shadow?"

"Oh! Yeah, I'm done." She tied off the thread. "Good as new!"

"Yes! You're not getting away from me anymore, shadow!" he crowed, running to the window. "Happy, let's go!"

Lucy bit her lip as he prepared to fly off. Oh, well. Maybe her life wasn't meant to be a fairy tale, after all…

But then he turned back and flashed her a grin. "Aren't you coming?"

She stared, heart hammering in her chest. "Wh-What?"

"You wanted to go to Fairy Tail Island, didn't you?" he asked. "Well, then, come with me! All you gotta do is have some faith, trust, and uh…"

He looked at Happy for help, and the blue cat raised an eyebrow at him. "Oh yeah! And Happy dust!"

"C-Can I?" Lucy stammered. "Can I really go to Fairy Tail Island?"

"Sure you can! Second star to the right, and straight on 'til morning! Happy, dump the dust!"

Happy flew over her and spun, showering Lucy with glittering particles of light. She suddenly laughed out loud.

"It feels so bubbly!" she giggled, and suddenly, her feet lifted off the ground.

"You're flying!" Natsu shouted, laughing with her as she spun in midair, eyes alight with happiness for the first time in four years.

"This is great! Whoo-hoo!" she squealed.

"Let's go!" he called, pointing out the window and then soaring out into the cool night air. Lucy followed suit, feeling the wind against her cheeks.

It was magical.

"Remember!" he called. "Second star to the right and straight on 'til morning! Let's go!"

And Lucy soared after him into the night, happy for the first time in forever.

xXx

Captain Gray was bored.

Very bored.

Dangerously bored, in fact.

After all, Gray might be somewhat of a gentleman, but he was still a pirate, and a pirate captain, at that. One who was currently wishing for a good fight.

"I'm bored," he told his first mate, Smee.

"Well, cap'n, it does get pretty boring without that flying boy Natsu Dragneel around to make fun of," Smee admitted.

Gray glared at him. "Are you saying that I need Natsu Dragneel around?"

"No, no, cap'n, no such thing. Um… Would you be interested in a game of chess?"

"We've played that. Twenty times," Gray waved his suggestion away. "What we need around here is some entertainment. Heck, even a natural disaster would be good right now. At least I'd have something to do."

If you're one of those people who either read a lot or watch TV a lot, you know that this is something you should never say. To say such a thing is a very, very bad idea.

_Extremely _bad.

However, being a pirate captain, Gray was not aware of such things. So when the sky instantly darkened and it started raining, he was taken by surprise.

"Huh. Well, would you look at that. A storm's brewing."

"That was convenient," Smee remarked.

"Well," Gray stood up and stretched. "Guess we'll have to anchor here."

The storm hit before he even finished his sentence. Fairy Tail Island was a place where such things happened daily, so no one was really worried.

That is, until the storm got worse.

And worse.

And worse.

And worse.

All in the span of five minutes.

Until even Gray was hanging on the railing for dear life.

The wind howled, rain lashing into the poor pirates as some of them dived below deck and others just tied themselves to whatever solid items they could find, too afraid to risk the run across the deck to the hatch. Gray's hat blew off his head, and instinctively, he grabbed for it – just when a wave of water washed over the side of the boat, taking him with it.

You have to give him credit, he grabbed onto the railing at the last minute, dangling over the side of the boat. Gray was just about to pull himself up when thunder crashed and another wave of water slapped him in the face. He gritted his teeth.

It was like the sea wanted to claim him or something. What in the world was going on?

"This storm blew up out of nowhere!" Smee gasped. "Sometimes I really hate living on Fairy Tail Island – CAP'N!"

Gray had let go of the railing. The storm was the island's doing, he'd realized, and it was best to give the island what it wanted. Water exploded around him as he slammed feet-first into the water.

That was when he realized he couldn't swim.

I know what you're thinking – what kind of self-respecting pirate captain couldn't swim? But Gray had never bothered to learn. His mother, Ur, had died in a swimming accident, and he had no wish to go the same way.

He was really beginning to regret that decision.

_Island, I gave you what you wanted. I'd so better not die._

And slowly, Captain Gray sunk beneath the waves…

**Eh, the beginning's not all that funny. But hey, it's the beginning.**

**So here you have Natsu Dragneel, the flying boy, Lucy Heartfillia, the girl the flying boy met, and Captain Gray Fullbuster, who does not know how to swim and hates Natsu for unknown reasons. Hmm…**

**Do review and favorite, and I'll be back soon with another chapter! **

**Water, out**


	2. Let Down Your - Wait no

_That tower does not look like paradise._

Across the island from Captain Gray's ship, Indian Princess Erza was feeling extremely bored as well. And lost.

"Where in the world am I…?" she wondered aloud, glancing around. An Indian princess was not supposed to get lost. She was supposed to know the forest as well as the back of her own hand. Unfortunately for Erza, the island changed shape every day. So she had no idea where in the forest she was.

"Guess I'll just have to keep walking," she sighed. And so, she walked.

And walked.

And walked.

And walked.

For like, an hour.

Until Erza threw up her hands in exasperation. "HOW BIG IS THIS FOREST, ANYWAY?!"

"Keep going for about another five miles, then make a turn to the left," a bored-sounding voice called out. "That should get you where you need to go."

"Oh, thanks – WAIT, WHO JUST SPOKE?!"

"Um," the voice said. "Up here."

Erza looked up. "Oh. OH. Didn't see you there! Wait, who're you?"

She couldn't believe she hadn't noticed the gigantic tower in front of her. Approximately two hundred feet above, a boy with blue hair and a tattoo across his face let out a sigh.

"Welcome to the Tower of Paradise. Whoopee. You're our third visitor in ten years. Lucky you."

He didn't look like he thought it was lucky at all.

"Wait," Erza stated, trying to make sense of the fact that there was a boy living in a tower in the middle of nowhere who she just so happened to run into. "You live here?"

"Yes. But you'd better get out of here soon, Ultear'll be back any minute now."

"Ultear? Who in the world is Ultear?"

"Uh, she's the witch that – HIDE!"

His eyes suddenly grew so panicked, Erza dived behind a bush without even thinking about it. A woman stepped into view, arms folded.

"Oh, Jellal, dear!" she called sweetly. "Let down your hair!"

The boy just stared at her blankly. "What?"

"Oh." Ultear blinked, then sighed. "Wrong spell, sorry. Let down your air!"

"_What?"_

"Oh, that's wrong too? Hmm, let's see… Let down your pear!"

He facepalmed. "You want me to just throw down the ladder?"

"…yeah, you should probably just do that."

Shaking his head, the blue haired boy disappeared from view, and a ladder suddenly dropped from the window. Ultear grabbed hold and began to climb.

While she was distracted, Jellal shot Erza a look. The look said, _Get out of here. Now._

She stared back. _But I just got here!_

He glared at her so fiercely, she nodded quickly and ran back into the forest, keeping her footsteps quick and light so that Ultear wouldn't catch her.

But in her heart, Erza knew that someday, somehow, she'd be back.

xXx

"This is Fairy Tail Island!" Natsu said cheerfully. Lucy looked around, eyes wide with wonder.

"It's beautiful," she breathed.

They were standing next to a waterfall that cascaded into a crystal clear lagoon. Behind them was a lush, green forest that Natsu told her housed the Indians.

"Erza's their princess," he added with a shudder. "She's terrifying."

"Indians? What other kinds of people do you have here?" Lucy asked, breathless with wonder.

"Hmm… Well, there are pirates," he pronounced the word like a proper lady would say the word _fart,_ "And fairies, and mermaids – oh, there goes one now!" A purple tail splashed back down into the lagoon, much to Lucy's excitement. "And, of course, the Lost Boys."

"Lost Boys? Who're they?"

"Boys who've fallen out of their carriages when they were babies," was the prompt reply. "Somehow, someday, they find their way here to Fairy Tail Island. I don't really know how it works."

"No Lost Girls?" she asked.

"No. Girls are much too smart to fall out of their carriages. But here, I'll bet the Lost Boys are dying to meet you! BOYS! COME ON OUT! I BROUGHT SOMEONE FOR YOU TO MEET!"

Lucy hadn't even seen it happen, but out of nowhere, she and Natsu were surrounded by boys.

"Natsu! You're back!" one cried.

"Let's go kick some pirate butt!" another cheered.

"Natsu, who's she? Is she, like, your girlfriend?"

"Hey, guys, look! It's a girl!"

"A girl?"

"Who's the girl, Natsu?"

Natsu laughed and introduced her. "This is Lucy. She'll be staying here from now on!"

He turned to Lucy. "This is Slightly, Curly, Toodles, the Twins, and – oh, hey, there, Romeo… Why're you soaked? And late?"

"Oh – no reason!" the new Lost Boy squeaked. "No reason at all! It was kind of stormy around some parts of the island."

Natsu glanced suspiciously at the horizon. "The only storm I see is around Gray's ship…"

"What? What would I be doing at Gray's ship?" Romeo laughed nervously.

Natsu shrugged. "Yeah, you've got a point. Romeo, this is Lucy. She'll be staying with us from now on!"

"Cool! I'm Romeo, as you probably know by now. Hey, Natsu, how's she supposed to get into the hideout?"

"Eh, I'll whittle her a hole. Actually, I should go do that right now. Seeya, guys! C'mon, Lucy!"

"Whittle me a hole? What does that mean?" Lucy asked, running after him into the forest.

"Oh, we all have our special tree trunks that only fit our bodies. So there's one entrance for each of us. I'm gonna go make you one, so you can come in!"

"Oh!" Lucy brightened up. "Thank you!"

"No problem. Say, I wonder where Happy went… He's been disappearing a lot these days. Come to think of it, so has Romeo." Natsu shrugged. "Eh, probably nothing."

"Y-You're not even suspicious?"

"They deserve their little secrets. Plus, I don't really need to know or care." He flashed her a grin. "So now let's go make you that entrance!"

xXx

Juvia stared at the boy on the beach, wondering _what _in the _world _had possessed her to _do _such a thing.

Her father was going to _kill _her.

Captain Gray lay on the sand, dark hair messy, as usual, his clothes soaking wet. His hat lay beside him, since Juvia had thoughtfully saved that too.

He was unconscious, but at least he wasn't dead. Unlike Juvia.

Juvia buried her face in her hands. "Juvia is _so dead."_

According to mermaid law, mermaids were not supposed to help other species. They were to mind their own business, maybe watch a little, but never interfere. Juvia had definitely interfered in this occasion. And seeing as he had legs and couldn't swim, the excuse _I thought he was a mermaid _wasn't going to cut it.

But he was just so… _Gray. _She couldn't have let him die like that.

Should she run away? No, Jose would definitely find her again, and then where would she be? In even more hot water, that's what.

"What am I supposed to do?" she wailed.

Inspiration struck her in that instant. Why, sing, of course!

…Okay, maybe singing was kind of a weird thing to do in this kind of situation, but hey, it made her feel better, and she really needed to feel better now. So she sang.

_"Look at this stuff_

_Isn't it neat _

_Wouldn't you think my collection's complete?_

_Wouldn't you think I'm the girl_

_Girl who has_

_Everything?_

_Look at this trove_

_Treasures untold_

_How many wonders can one cavern hold?_

_Looking around here, you'd think _

_Yup, she's got everything…"_

"CAP'N!"

Juvia squeaked in terror and dived into the waves right before Smee appeared over the rocks to her right, making a direct beeline to Gray.

"Cap'n, are you okay? Tell me you're not dead, Cap'n! You can't be dead!"

"Wha…?" Gray mumbled, much to Juvia's relief. "Whazz goin' on…?"

"Oh, cap'n!" Smee cried, throwing his arms around him. "You're alive! Wendy, look at this – he's alive!"

A young girl with long, dark blue hair appeared on the rocks, running toward Gray and Smee.

"Are you all right, Captain?" she asked worriedly. "When you fell overboard, everyone thought you'd drowned for sure!"

"No, no, I'm fine." Gray pushed Smee off him. "Did you hear that?"

"Hear what, Captain?" Smee asked.

"That… That voice." Gray looked around, searching, Juvia realized with a happy thrill, for _her. _

"Didn't hear no voice, Cap'n. You sure you didn't hit your head too hard?"

"Of course not," Gray snapped irritably. "There was a girl. And she was singing." His voice took on a dreamy quality. "It was beautiful. _She _was beautiful."

Smee shook his head. "Wasn't no girl, Cap'n, just you. You see anyone, Wendy?"

"No, sir, I didn't."

"There, you see? You probably just swallowed too much seawater. Here, come on back to the ship so Wendy can take care of you…"

Gray allowed himself to be pulled to his feet and back to the ship, but he looked around one more time. Juvia ducked under the waves again, blushing furiously.

Seeing nothing, Gray let out a sigh. "Yeah, you're right. It was probably my imagination. Let's go."

**Well, I don't normally reply to reviews, but this time, I thought I'd give it a shot.**

**Bookwormswillruletheworld: Here is your update. And yes, Gray is much cooler than Captain Hook.**

**Shugo Fairy 4eva: Well, I'm glad you think so! They did do the whole Big Hero 6 thing, which was kind of like anime, but you're right, it'd be totally cool if Disney and anime combined.**

**ForeverDreamer12: Yeah, I really like Disney and Fairy Tail, so this happened. Perfect…? Well, thank you! And here is some more!**

**Well, that's all, so **

**Water, out**


	3. Stepsisters for Sale, Anyone Wanna Buy?

_I've got a sister for sale! Anyone interested? In fact, make that two! Half-price! … No?_

Yukino didn't know which way to look.

"Yukino! Do my hair!"

"Yukino! Where's my laundry?"

"Yukino! Get over here and do my hair already!"

"ARE YOU DONE WITH THE DISHES YET YOU WORTHLESS BRAT?!"

"Almost done with the dishes, sir!" she called upstairs. "And I'll be in there to do your hair in a little bit, Minerva!"

"Hurry up!" her stepsister screeched. "I have a date in a few minutes!"

Yukino sighed in exasperation. Minerva was always dating a new guy every week. For some strange reason, she found it fun to dump them and watch their reactions.

… Yeah, no one ever said Yukino didn't live in a family full of sadistic jerks. They weren't even her real family, anyway. Gemma was her stepfather, and her mother was dead.

"What about my laundry?!" Flare screeched.

"Coming!"

Yup, even when you were four inches tall and lived in Pixie Hollow, things like this could happen. Queen Titania Clarion and King Oberon were always fooled by Gemma's acting and money.

Not that the King and Queen ever investigated Yukino's living quarters themselves, of course. They always sent this one guy named Orga to do it, and he was being paid off by Gemma. So to make a long story short, Yukino basically had no way out.

Unless she managed to, you know, run away or something. But she'd tried that once. It didn't turn out too well. As in, getting locked in the basement for three days not too well.

"YUKINO!"

Yukino snapped out of her thoughts and ran upstairs.

Just then, out of nowhere, the doorbell rang. "URGENT MESSAGE FROM HIS AND HER MAJESTIES, KING OBERON AND QUEEN CLARION!"

"Never mind! Go get that!" Minerva snapped the instant Yukino arrived, breathing hard, at the top of the stairs. She ran back down again, scowling, and opened the door.

"Here is a letter from the king and queen!" the messenger boomed. "Good day to you, madam!"

He flew away, leaving an official-looking letter in Yukino's hands. She took it up to Minerva.

Minerva ripped it open as fast as she could.

"It's a ball!" she squealed. "A ball to decide who the prince is going to marry!"

Flare gasped in delight. "We have to go shopping!"

"For new dresses!"

"Oh, dear, I've got nothing to wear!"

"EEEK! We have to go RIGHT NOW!"

"Well, then, let's go!"

They ran out of the room, leaving Yukino in the dust, blinking. _What just happened?_

She picked up the letter Minerva had left on the desk and read, _Every young and eligible maiden in Pixie Hollow is invited to go to the Masked Ball to determine the prince's bride. We hope you will be able to attend! Sincerely, King Oberon and Queen Clarion._

She put the letter down, eyes wide. Every young and eligible maiden?

Wait, didn't that count Yukino herself?

But what was she going to wear?

_And there's also the fact that Gemma would never let me…_

But a ball.

A Masked Ball.

With dresses and food and dancing and…

_And him._

Yukino closed her eyes and thought back to a memory she'd forced out of her mind so many times before.

_"Hey, who're you? What's a girl like you doing all the way out here in the forest?"_

_"M-My name's Yukino, and I ran away."_

_"Huh? Why would you go and do a silly thing like running away for? Did your mom get mad at you or something?"_

_She looked down at her shoes, trying not to cry. "My mom's gone."_

_"Oh! Oh, I didn't mean… H-Hey! Are you crying? I'm sorry! Don't cry! It's okay!"_

_And then this complete stranger, who didn't even know her and had no reason to care, gave her a HUG._

_Which just made her cry more._

_Yukino bawled into his shoulder, making the stranger's eyes widen. "Oh, cake, did I make you cry more? I'm sorry! Please, please don't cry!"_

_"I-It's okay. I'm f-fine," she hiccupped. "Who're you?"_

_He flashed her a grin as bright as the sun. "My name's Sting."_

She hadn't found out until later that he was the prince. She hadn't seen him since that day, either.

But this was her opportunity. To say thank you for everything he'd done for her. For showing her how to hide and survive in the forest. She'd lasted two whole weeks with him before Gemma found her. Two weeks of bliss.

Two weeks that remained etched in her memory, for all these years.

Yukino's eyes opened, a determined gleam in them. She _was_ going to this ball, Gemma be damned.

It would take a whole lot more than some stinking rich guy to keep her away.

xXx

"But Daaaad," Sting whined. "I don't wanna get married!"

"Son," Oberon sighed. "Nobody's saying you have to get married. We just want you to get a girlfriend. You know, have some company and stuff. You haven't even spoken to any girl besides your mother and the servants for years."

"I do have company!" Sting pointed out. "I've got Lector and Rogue and Frosch!"

"Two of those on your list are cats, and the other one is your brother."

"So? What if I don't need a girlfriend?" He folded his arms stubbornly. "Some people scold their kids for messing around with girls, you know. You should be glad that I'm not at that stage yet."

Oberon sighed again. "Is this because of that girl you met in the forest all those years ago?"

Sting flushed and looked away. "No."

"Well, then, you should see this as an opportunity. We invited all the young and eligible girls in the land. If she's not already taken, then you'll see her there."

His son did a complete 360. "Whoa, what?"

"Yeah."

"Okay, you know what? I've changed my mind. Bring it on."

"Good. I knew you'd see it my way. Now, go to your mother. She has your suit."

"Okay!"

Sting made it all the way to the door before what his father had said registered. "Wait… WHAT SUIT?!"

xXx

Erza had been walking around for about an hour, lost.

Again.

But, of course, she had a reason this time. She had to see the boy in the tower again.

To most, Erza seemed like the ideal Indian princess – calm, tough, and unrelenting in battle. However, she did have a sense of curiosity. Which was why she was lost.

Again.

For the fiftieth time, she cursed the island for being such a jerk and changing its terrain every day. I mean, seriously. Why would it do such an unnecessary thing?

But before she'd even finished her thought, the island decided to be nice and the tower appeared in front of her yet again.

Erza immediately apologized to the island and promised it some cookies.

"Hello?" she called up to the window, which was currently empty. "Anyone up there?"

Jellal appeared in a flash, scowling. "What're you doing back here? I told you to leave the first time!"

Erza stood her ground, even though her heart gave a little flutter. (She denies this ever happened.) "Please. You can't expect me to leave after what happened the first time."

"What, that you got lost and I gave you directions? I gave you those so you would go _away. _What if Ultear sees?"

"Yeah, that's just it! Who is Ultear, anyway? What're you doing locked in a tower like a damsel-in-distress?"

"I am _not – "_

"Uh, yes, you are. Get out of the tower, then. Either that, or tell me why."

Jellal happened to be locked in a tower, but he did have his manly pride. And seeing as he couldn't get out of the tower, he sighed exasperatedly and told her the answer: "Parsley."

"What?" Erza stared. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"I'm trapped in this tower because of _parsley. _Happy now?"

"How did _parsley _trap you in a tower?"

"Parsley didn't trap me in the tower, Ultear did! Ugh, will you just leave?"

Erza didn't budge. "Not until you tell me why you're in here. You look like you need a friend."

That had the effect you would've guessed it to have.

Jellal stared. "A what?"

Erza blinked. Then grabbed a stick and began drawing in the dirt.

"Okay, so friends are people who do stuff together, laugh together, talk about things, and basically have fun! Friends give you a warm feeling in your heart, and good friends will do anything for you! They tell each other all their secrets, and – "

"I know what friendship is!" Jellal broke in, still looking incredibly thrown off. "What do you mean I need a friend?"

"Everyone needs friends!"

"Oh yeah? Then how come instead of hanging with your friends, you're chatting to me, huh?"

That threw _Erza _off. She looked down at her feet and mumbled something incoherent.

"What was that?" Jellal questioned.

"I don't have any real friends," she mumbled a little louder.

"You _what? _Then _how come – "_

."Because I've always wanted a friend, and you're the only person I've ever come across who's not terrified of me or my dad!"

"Well, I'm kind of terrified of you. You ask too many questions," he muttered. "But why in the world would anyone be scared of you, Scarlet?"

Erza blinked. "… Scarlet?"

"Yeah, 'cause your hair. It's scarlet."

Her hand immediately went to her hair. "… Yeah, I guess it is."

"But seriously. Why would anyone be terrified of you?"

In response, Erza karate-chopped a rock. It split in half.

"… Ah."

"Yeah."

"That's a neat trick."

"Yup. Plus, I'm kind of the princess, so I have a lot of power and stuff."

"I…see. Okay. That's very…" Jellal suddenly froze. "Hide! Ultear's back!"

Erza dove into a bush yet again as the witch appeared.

"Okay! I know I've got it this time!" she announced. "Let down your hair!"

Jellal sighed. "That's what you said yesterday! And the day before that, and the day before _that, _and – "

"Oh, whatever! Let down your pear!"

He buried his face in his hands and groaned.

"Uh… Let down your dare?"

"THAT DOESN'T EVEN MAKE ANY SENSE!"

"Hey, a girl's gotta try. One more time. Let down your – "

The ladder thwacked her in the nose. "OW! THAT WAS RUDE!"

She grabbed the rungs and hauled herself up, grumbling. Jellal glanced at Erza, eyes narrowing.

She waved and ran away, one word echoing in her head over and over again.

_Scarlet._

**Okay, so I'm back!  
><strong>

**Some Jerza and StiYu there for you. I adore StiYu, so it was bound to show up sooner or later.**

**RoWen coming soon! I absolutely adore that one, so it must come soon.**

**And now for the review replies!**

**ForeverDreamer12: Well, I'm glad you thought it was awesome! And RoWen for the win!**

**Bookwormswillruletheworld: Of course Jellal's the one in the tower. And nope, definitely not...**

**NutsieDreamer: Thank you! And yes, I was hoping it was seamless, so thanks for confirming my doubts to be untrue!**

**me ga mawaru: Jellal definitely has enough hair to let fall. **

**Dark Shining Light: Yup, Fairy Tail/Fairy Tales crossovers are the best. And so is NaLu!**

**The star: Here is your update!**

**Well, that's all, so **

**Water, out**


	4. This Technically Isn't a Break In, Right

_"For the sun is in the east, and Juliet is like the sun."_

_"Wait, do you mean that Juliet's hot, or that she's fat?"_

* * *

><p>Captain Gray was pacing the deck of his ship, scowling, like he'd been doing for days.<p>

(He was getting a little tired of pacing, if you really want the truth.)

Every so often, he'd glance at the ocean, sigh, then get back to his pacing. He also hummed a lot, namely the song that he claimed the girl had sung to him.

The crew was beginning to think that maybe their captain had either swallowed too much seawater, or had gone completely loopy. (A condition they believed to also be brought about by eating too many Fruit Loops, which was why Fruit Loops were never seen on board Gray's ship anymore – but that's irrelevant.)

It was because of all this pacing, sighing, and humming that he did not notice one blue-haired young pirate and her cat sneaking off the ship and running into the forest.

Wendy glanced behind her worriedly, but the captain was still glassy-eyed and distant. He wouldn't notice her absence for hours, at least. Hours that she could spend, er, slightly _bending the rules._

Okay, so maybe it was complete and utter decimation of the rules, but Wendy was a growing girl who needed companionship. And pirates weren't very good companions, unless you counted her best friends, Cheria and Carla – but they wasn't exactly the type of companions Wendy was looking for. Cheria was a bit too much of a girly girl, and Carla had her own things to worry about.

Wendy needed someone whom she could spend time with as herself, without any of the rushing-to-please personality that she usually had. A person who could make her laugh and didn't judge her when she did something fun. A person who was coincidentally named Romeo.

A person who just so happened to be a Lost Boy, aka the allies of her captain's greatest rival, Natsu Dragneel.

Which was why, if anyone ever caught them together, explosions would happen.

Gray and Natsu didn't really hate each other's guts all that much. They'd team up if they had to. But Natsu had his Lost Boys and Gray had his pirates, and they fought all the time. Mostly because there wasn't really anything else to do.

(Seriously, think about it. What fun would they have if they were all buddy-buddy all the time?)

Unfortunately for Wendy and Romeo, however, if Gray and Natsu ever caught them together, there'd be explosions. Big ones. Plus ice shards. (Gray was a talented ice sculptor – a weird pastime for a pirate, but Blackbeard had knitted, so whatever.) Since they _were _still supposed to be rivals.

"Hey, Wendy! Carla!"

Romeo and Happy waved from the top of the waterfall where they always met. For some reason, the island always kept the waterfall in the same place, so they met there whenever they could.

"C'mon up!" Romeo called down.

Carla sprinkled some Carla Dust on Wendy, who instantly giggled. Exceed Dust always made people feel happy. They both flew up to meet the boys.

"Hi," Wendy said.

"Hey." Romeo's eyes shone.

"Hello, Carla! Want a fish?" Happy asked hopefully, but the white Exceed turned away with a "Hmph!"

Wendy and Romeo both snickered.

"So, what should we do today?" Wendy asked. "Swimming? Fishing? Gray's not going to be expecting me back for hours."

"What about just regular old flying?" Romeo suggested. "We should go and explore the island some more!"

"Okay!"

And the two flew off.

xXx

"Uh-uh-uh, Lisanna. No sticks for you."

Mirajane plucked the bundle of firewood out of her sister's hands. "After all, remember the curse?"

Lisanna puffed out her cheeks and blew in exasperation. "Yeah, yeah. Sixteenth birthday, curse strikes, I know. But I'm only fifteen, Mira!"

"You'll be sixteen soon, and I intend to make sure that you live to see seventeen," was Mira's reply. "After all, we may have gotten kicked out of our home, but that doesn't mean I can't still take care of you!"

Lisanna sighed in defeat. "Right. Fine. I won't help anymore."

Elfman stomped into camp, carrying a gigantic bundle of firewood as big as Lisanna herself. "Collecting firewood is a man's job!"

"That's right. Now, put that over here, and we can start a fire!" Mira replied cheerily.

Lisanna sat down on a log and let out another sigh.

After their parents had passed away, the villagers had kicked them out, believing Mira to be some kind of witch or demon. Their father's position as mayor had been the only thing keeping them from losing everything, so the instant he and their mother was gone, they had been thrown out. After all, no one could deny that their family was ever so slightly eccentric. There was Elfman, who at sixteen was already larger and stronger than anyone else in the village. There was Mira, whose beauty at seventeen had provoked some jealous girls in the village to create the nasty rumors about her being a witch. And then there was Lisanna, whose first birthday was well-recalled by everyone who knew her.

_You didn't invite me? Well then, my birthday present will be the best one, because I'm so nice. On her sisteenth birthday, Lisanna Strauss will prick her finger on a spindle – and DIE!_

Yeah, no one ever said that her father's former workers were very nice. That's how come they were his _former _workers. But Faust had been ever so slightly off the deep end, as well as not so nice. Plus, he was already proven to be a warlock, which was the main reason why he'd been fired.

"Quit sighing, Lisanna!" Mira ordered. "It won't do any good to mope around all the time! It's dinner! Look alive! Wait, what in the world is that?"

In the distance was a castle. The island had apparently shifted again.

"Hey, why don't we go there for dinner?" Mira asked, her eyes lighting up. "I'm sure they'll have better food than we do, and maybe they'll let us stay there for the night!"

Lisanna shrugged. "What've we got to lose?"

xXx

"Hello?" Mira called. "Anyone in here?"

The castle was dark, the drawbridge lowered. It gave Lisanna the shivers.

"Well," her sister sighed, "I don't think there's anyone he – "

"WE'VE GOT VISITORS!" someone screamed at the top of their lungs. "FREED, EVER, YOU'VE GOT TO SEE THIS, WE HAVE VISITORS! GET OUT THE FOOD! GET OUT THE TABLECLOTH! WE HAVE VISITORS!"

And the lights came blazing on.

Elfman, Mira, and Lisanna watched in absolute _shock _as a duster, a teapot, a clock, and a candlestick flew around the room, plates flying onto the table by themselves with forks and spoons following. In a few minutes, the table was set, and the candlestick came over.

And then it _bowed. _

"I'm Freed, and welcome to the castle! The master is currently busy, but I hope you'll enjoy your stay!"

Lisanna couldn't get her mouth to close. "You're a candlestick."

"Yes," he agreed. "Yes, I do happen to have the condition of being a candlestick, as you so eloquently put it."

"You _talk."_

"Yes, well, as you have no doubt noticed, I am capable of such things as well. Would you like to take a seat and dine with us?"

"I'll help her," the clock volunteered. A cuckoo bird flew out of it, repeating, _Help her! Help her!_

Lisanna's brain, however, was still stuck. "The table set _itself."_

"Yeah, it'll do that," the clock nodded (as well as a clock can, anyway). "I'm Bixlow. This is Pippi, Poppo, Puppu, Pappa, and Peppe. Nice to meet you."

A different-colored cuckoo bird flew out of him every time he introduced one. Lisanna was completely struck dumb, but Mira recovered at that instant.

"Well," she shrugged, smiling. "we can hardly waste all your work, now, can we? But how rude of me not to have introduced myself. I'm Mirajane Strauss, and these are my siblings, Elfman and Lisanna. Thank you for welcoming us."

At this, all the objects' eyes started sparkling.

"She's _perfect!" _Bixlow exclaimed.

"Yes, she'll do quite nicely," Freed agreed.

"She's not as pretty as me, but she'll do," the duster amended.

"Perfect?" Mira looked worried by this. "For what?"

"Oh, the master's been needing some company. We've been trying to get him married off for a while now, you know," the teapot replied. "But no need to think about that now! Be our guest and eat!"

Mira still looked slightly suspicious, but in the end, the food won out. The siblings all sat down to eat, Bixlow settling down next to Lisanna.

"So… How do you talk?" she asked him curiously.

He shrugged. "Magic. We used to be human too, you know. Until this one witch came by. Laxus – that's the master, by the way – he wasn't all that nice to her, so she cursed us. We're still trying to break the spell."

Lisanna nodded, still trying to take this all in. Magic talking objects that moved by themselves and ate dinner wasn't really something you can get over in a few seconds.

But then, the peace was instantly shattered when a loud voice yelled,

"WHAT ARE THESE PEOPLE DOING IN MY CASTLE?!"

* * *

><p><strong>Forgot to mention last chapter that the friendship thing was a reference to GigiDigi's Cucumber Quest. Apologies.<strong>

**Anyway, review time!**

**Bookwormswillruletheworld: RoWen is the first ship you see in this chapter, not including the minor Gruvia.**

**ForeverDreamer12: (Blushes) Flawless? Well, I'm not really that good…. I'm glad you think so!**

**PhantomPierce-Okamoto: Yay! I love making people laugh, so thank you!**

**MarinaHeartfillia: Glad you think so!**

**camacazi1: Yeah, Ultear has a terrible memory, doesn't she?**

**Well, that's all!**

**Water, out**


	5. Nope, No Wolves Here

_The Big Bad Wolf is just about the saddest predator I've ever heard of._

* * *

><p>"And then I ate the wolf."<p>

Levy McGarden slowly raised her eyebrows at her friend. "... So did he taste good?"

"Yup. He was delicious!" Jet licked his lips, sighing in pleasure. "Sooo good."

"I ate his best friend," Droy proudly put in. "He was good too. Hey, I saved some for you!"

Levy's eyes lit up. "Thanks, Droy!"

He held something out to her, which Levy took. She popped one in her mouth and sighed.

"Mmmm… Grandma really does make the best gingerbread cookies. And it's really cool how she shapes them all like animals, huh?"

"Yeah, it is. Hey, don't you have to be somewhere soon?" Jet asked, folding his arms.

"Oh, yeah. I need to go deliver some stuff to Grandma. You two should get back to the village, they'll need you now that Elfman's gone."

Jet and Droy both frowned.

"I still hate the fact that we weren't able to do anything," Droy muttered.

"Gaston's a real jerk. I can't believe he ran them out like that," Jet added with a scowl.

"And all because Mira rejected him," Levy agreed. "Sometimes, I'd like to give him a good punch in the face for being such a narcissistic moron. Well, I'd better get going. See you later!"

"Seeya, Levy!" both boys called. At the very last second, however, Droy turned around.

"Oh, yeah! Be careful out there, okay? I heard there're wolves!"

And then they were gone.

Levy tugged on her hood (a present from her grandmother), and picked up her basket.

"Wolves," she scoffed. "As if."

xXx

"And this is the living room/bedroom!"

Lucy glanced around at the small but cozy hideout, smiling. "It's amazing!"

"Of course it is," Natsu said bluntly. "We made it."

Lucy laughed and sat down on one of the faded blue beanbag chairs. "So...what do we do now?"

"Whattaya mean? We go have fun, of course!"

"Have fun? Like how?"

"Anything! What do you like to do?"

Lucy blinked, thrown off. No one had asked her that question in years.

"Well," she started hesitantly. "I…don't really know."

"You don't know?" Natsu stared at her as if she had two heads. "How can you not know?"

"I've mostly been locked in my room for the last couple of years," she confessed. "I don't really know what I like to do."

"Well, then, we'll just have to try doing everything!"

"E-Everything?"

"Yup! HEY, LOST BOYS! WE'RE GONNA SHOW LUCY HOW TO HAVE FUN!"

The Lost Boys piled in, Romeo in the rear. He was panting as if he'd just run all the way across the island.

"Hey, Romeo, what's with you? You're usually way earlier than this!" Natsu commented. Romeo turned bright red.

"O-Oh, nothing! I wasn't doing anything!"

"And Happy! You totally vanished on us!" He rounded on his cat, who gave him an innocent smile.

"Vanished on you? I didn't do anything like that!"

"Pssh," Natsu scoffed before turning to Lucy. "All right. Let's go in alphabetical order! So we'll play Ninjas first, and Airplanes next!"

And before Lucy could ask him in what universe the letter N came before the letter A, he grabbed her hand and flew out of the hideout.

xXx

_Later…_

Lucy had decided that while Ninjas was fun and Airplanes was even more fun, she preferred quiet time over them both.

For some strange reason, (probably for the younger ones like Toodles to take their naps) Natsu had created a quiet time where no one was allowed to say anything. If you said more than two words, you'd lose your dinner. (The two-word limit was to allow polite phrases like "Please", "Thank you", and "Excuse me.")

Lucy sat on her cot, which Natsu had helpfully set up for her five minutes before, writing her story. (Which was a secret, so don't tell.) Natsu was lying flat on his stomach on the ground, coloring in an impressive picture of a dragon with a crayon. (Crayik brand crayons: Buy yours today! Not available at any store, drugstore, market, food vendor, outdoor market, library, black market, sweets shop, chocolate cupcake, home, dojo, video game, internet, website, ninja, merchant, or newspaper.)

She was scribbling frantically away when out of nowhere…

KA-BOOM!

Natsu jumped to his feet. "What was that?!"

All the Lost Boys made silent ooh-ing noises. Slightly held up his sketchpad, which read:

_YOU LOST YOUR DINNER._

Natsu scowled. "Quiet time's over. Now what was that?"

"Sounded like a cannon. You know, like the pirates'," Romeo commented.

Natsu's eyes widened, then narrowed. "HOW DARE THEY INTERRUPT THIS TIME OF PEACE! LOST BOYS, PREPARE FOR WAR!"

"YAAAAAYYYYY!"

Lucy watched in absolute bewilderment as the Lost Boys scrambled to grab their weapons (sticks) and shields (boards). She turned to Natsu.

"What about me?"

"You're the princess," was his prompt reply. "You gotta stay here and watch."

Lucy shrugged, then went back to writing her story. She didn't care much for fighting, anyway, and she could watch the battle perfectly fine from the hideout. (One window conveniently looked out directly at Gray's ship.)

"ALL RIGHT!" Natsu bellowed. "LET'S MOVE!"

And the Lost Boys charged.

xXx

It was the night of the ball, and Yukino still didn't have anything to wear.

Minerva and Flare twirled around the house in their fancy dresses and necklaces, ordering her around like never before. She hadn't even been able to eat dinner yet, let alone make a dress.

(She was getting kind of hungry, if you really want the truth.)

Gemma stepped out of his room, dressed immaculately in a suit. He cast an approving glance at his daughters, then a sneer at Yukino.

"Are you ready to go?" he asked, addressing Minerva and Flare.

"I've been ready for hours!" Minerva scoffed. "Let's go. I want to have the prince's first dance."

Flare gave a derisive laugh. "_You, _have the prince's first dance? _I'll _have the prince's first dance!"

"As if! Your dress isn't nearly pretty enough!"

"Ha! With that face, a dress wouldn't even matter!"

They were about ready to tear each other apart when Gemma cleared his throat.

Minerva and Flare immediately went into sugar-and-honey mode. "Sorry, Father!"

"We should be going, now," he said, his tone cold. "And do try not to embarrass me in front of the king and queen."

He made it all the way to the door before Yukino spoke.

"Um, actually, shouldn't I be going too?"

Gemma froze, then let out a derisive laugh. "_You?"_

"The letter did say every eligible maiden," she pointed out.

He stared at her, a long, cold stare that made Yukino want to melt into a puddle and dissolve. "I would hardly call you eligible. You don't even have anything to wear, do you?"

"Well," Yukino stated, her cheeks red, "I was thinking that maybe I could borrow one of Minerva's or Flare's. They do have a lot of – "

"As if!" Minerva shrieked. "As if I would let _her _anywhere _near _my clothes!"

"Honestly," Flare sneered, " give it up. The prince would never notice you, anyway."

Yukino bit her lip, knowing it was a lost cause. She stared at her shoes, wanting to cry.

_Maybe she's right. Would Sting still even remember me? _

"Come on, girls," Gemma finally said. "We're going to be late. And _you…"_

He smirked at poor Yukino, who was fighting back tears. "You are to scrub every single floor clean by the time we get back. If I see a single speck of dust…"

Leaving the threat hanging in the air, Gemma and his daughters left.

And Yukino broke down and cried.

* * *

><p><strong>Aww… Poor Yukino…<strong>

**Oh, dear, something's happened on Gray's ship! Wonder what?**

**Nature, Air, Animal, if you caught the reference, I applaud you. If anyone else caught the reference, you are either a stalker, or you have seriously good hearing. Either way, I will give you a cookie. Like, a real one. Because you have to be a superhero to have caught it without knowing me very well.**

**And now for the review replies!**

**Phantom-Pierce Okamoto: Thanks! But I'm not that good… (mumbles)**

**Bookwormswillruletheworld: Flawless? Nah, still got a long way to go. But hey, thanks anyway!**

**ForeverDreamer12: Yeah, Ultear's memory sucks. And yes, Rowen is adorable!**

**ultimateninja44: Yeah, but someone else has already asked to continue it, so… I'll post the link on the story soon.**

**AlexuPenguin: Oh dear. That paper cut's going to turn out really badly… And falling in love with an inanimate object is ****_entirely _****normal…**

**Lessthanthreeanime: Here's the next chapter! And I'm really glad you like it!**

**NutsieDreamer: I know! They really do go together! What other pairings? Well, you'll see, like you said… Thank you for liking it so much! Miraxus and Bixanna…? Hahaha…. (Yup, definitely.) And silly island indeed.**

**camacazi1: Thank you!**

**The star: Yes, yes it is.**

**Guest: Yeah, the chapter names are fun to think up. My other OTPs are RoWen and StiYu/StingYu, if you really want to know. Cures for writer's block? Well, I usually have the opposite of writer's block (having too many ideas and not enough time or patience to write them all) but sometimes I find that if you have writer's block, then maybe the story isn't taking the path you want it to take. If you're using a computer, erase the segment you're working on (but don't save!) then take a new path. Maybe that'll help.**

**NaLuFan233177777: Here's more!**

**Zero: (blushes) It's not that amazing… If you smiled, that makes me smile too! So thank you!**

**Welp, that's all for now, so**

**Water, out**


	6. These People Have Really Bad Memories

_Here, have a pumpkin coach. You're way smaller than one anyway._

* * *

><p>Yukino had been sobbing on the ground for all of about five minutes when there was a thump and a man wearing a dress fell out of the chimney, dumping soot everywhere.<p>

Normally, she would've been irritated that he'd interrupted her little self-pity moment (she didn't get as many as she'd like) but number one: he had just fallen out of the chimney, and number two: He. Was. Wearing. A. Dress.

Yukino was instantly scarred for life.

"Santa Claus?" she asked weakly, because hey, he _had _just come down a chimney, and he _did _have a gigantic (well, to her; to us it would be about the size of a pair of scissors), mysterious-looking bag next to him. The stranger gave her a scathing look.

"No, I happen to be the tooth fairy," he replied.

Yukino took a step back, debating whether she should A) scream and hit him on the head with something, B) scream and call the police, or C) scream and make him clean up the mess he'd made. (Gemma did say the house had to be spotless, and there was fifteen minutes of cleaning right there.) She decided on D) stand still and hope she was just dreaming, and that she'd wake up in time to clean the house before Gemma and his daughters returned.

"Who in the world are you?" she managed, trying to not faint. Because who knew how badly this guy could trash the place while she was out?

"As I just told you, I'm the tooth fairy. I'm also your fairy godmother – sorry, father, however, and that's why I'm here."

Yukino's mouth opened and closed. Then it opened again. "Why are you wearing a dress?"

He groaned. "Yes, I understand how strange it must look. But the last couple of tooth fairies were women, and they haven't gotten around to changing the attire yet. Please forgive me for the unprofessional look." Then he mumbled that sounded like, "Plus it's kinda comfy."

Well, either that or "This rock is really bumpy", but let's just go with the former.

He held out a hand to Yukino, who simply stared blankly at it. "My name is Arcadios. I am of the belief that you would like to attend the ball being held tonight."

Yukino's eyes widened. "How did you – "

"I'm your fairy godfather, it's my duty to know things like this. Okay, do you have a favorite color?"

She blinked. "… I'm sorry, what?"

"Favorite color! Do you have a favorite color? You're already late for the ball, so I really must make this quick."

"I don't know… I've never… White?"

He nodded. "Okay, white it is. If I were female I might be able to tell if it would clash with your skin or your hair or something like that, but unfortunately, I am not, so I apologize. I'll just make you a dress. Is that all right with you?"

She nodded mutely, and Arcadios then proceeded to wave his wand (that he pulled out of nowhere) and dress her in the most beautiful dress she'd ever seen.

It was white, snow-white, with a skirt that gently flowed and ended right at her ankles. It was sleeveless but not daring, the top adorned with lace and a shimmering satin ribbon. Snow-white gloves the exact shade of the ribbon materialized on her hands, and when Yukino reached up, a another ribbon looped together to look like a flower was placed perfectly in her hair, the ends trailing. For the final touch, a pair of glittering glass slippers appeared on her feet.

Arcadios studied her critically. "What do you think? Is the ribbon too much?"

She shook her head, making sure not to disturb any of his brilliant handiwork. "Oh… No! Not at all! It's…"

Yukino gave him a look full of stars. "It's _beautiful."_

He smiled. "Eh, I try. Do you have any pumpkins?"

She was thrown off for a second, then just shook her head.

"Good thing I came prepared, then. We'd better go outside for this." And Arcadios proceeded to grab his mysterious bag and stride outside, Yukino following. Once outside, he pulled out of the bag the biggest pumpkin Yukino had ever seen.

(Which was not an easy feat, seeing as they were only four inches tall. But it was a mini pumpkin, so that made it a little better.)

"Er… What was the spellword again…?" He scratched his head. "Bibbidi-bobbidi-boo!"

The pumpkin, unfortunately, did not budge.

Arcadios tried again. "Abracadabra!"

It still didn't budge.

"Crayik!"

Nope.

"Er… Chocolate cake!"

Incredibly, no.

"Would it be in accordance with your desires to assist me in creating a wheeled vehicle out of yourself so that this fair lady may be in possession of a means to transportation to a social event being held by the royal highnesses of this kingdom?"

It was a good try, but the stubborn pumpkin stayed a pumpkin.

He sighed. "Please?"

And then, out of nowhere, the pumpkin transformed into a stagecoach before Yukino's astonished eyes.

"Ah, that's why they call it the magic word." Nodding, Arcadios turned to Yukino. "Your ride and dress have been provided, so there's only one more thing I have to tell you. The spell will be broken at midnight, so please try to be home before then."

"Midnight? But aren't you an all-powerful fairy?" Yukino asked. "Couldn't you make me a princess for good if you tried?"

"Honey, I'm not a genie. Go to Aladdin for that."

She hesitated. "But what about cleaning the house?"

"It's more of a mansion, in my opinion. But I'll take care of that. I think his exact words were 'Not a speck,' correct?" He smiled. "Go. And have fun."

"Thank you," Yukino breathed, then got in the pumpkin/stagecoach. "Thank you so much, Arcadios!"

He waved it away. "It's all part of the job. So go have fun! And do me a favor – get the prince. I think the Greater Power of Good would have a fit if one of your stepsisters ended up with him, and frankly, I don't feel up to handling that mess. Goodbye!"

"Bye!" Yukino sang, and then she was off.

To the ball.

xXx

Erza was back.

Again.

Much to Jellal's frustration.

"How many times have I told you not to come back?" he snapped.

Erza shrugged. "A million and six."

"Okay, then for the one million and seventh time, go away!"

"No."

Jellal buried his face in his hands. "You're so annoying, Scarlet. Why won't you just go away?"

"Because you don't want me to."

This answer, not unsurprisingly, caught him off guard. "What?"

"You don't want me to," Erza repeated. "That's how come, instead of going inside and throwing stuff at me, you're still talking to me."

'That's because if I throw something out there, I'm never going to get it back. Locked in a tower, remember? And I don't have that much stuff as it is."

"Yeah, that's just it. Why in the world _are _you in there? And don't tell me 'parsley' again – give me the complete answer."

He sighed. "If I tell you, will you go away?"

"Nope. But it'll give you someone to talk to. Ultear kinda seems like an airhead to me, she must not be very good company."

Jellal paused. "… You've got a point. Fine. I'm stuck in here because my dad went and stole some parsley from Ultear's garden, she threw a fit, and demanded his firstborn child in exchange. Guess who that turned out to be."

Erza blinked. "That's kinda sad."

"Tell me about it."

"Why in the world would she even want you, anyway? All she's apparently done with you so far is throw you in a tower for a thousand years."

"You see this thing?" He pointed to his tattoo-eye-thingy. "Apparently, it's supposed to hold, like, unlimited magic power or whatever. All that means is that I get to listen to Ultear yell gibberish at me for an hour every day."

She stared at him. "Wow."

"Yeah."

"Your life really sucks."

"I know."

"I feel bad for you now."

"I feel bad for me too. Now are you going to go away already?"

"Nope."

"…thought so."

"So what do you even do in there? You know, when Ultear's gone."

"Um. I paint."

"You what?"

"Don't judge me. There's nothing else to do in this dump!"

"Eh." She waved it away. "At least you don't sew. That would be sad."

Jellal turned bright red.

Erza stared at him. "Wait, don't tell me you – "

"_You _try living in this tower for a million years!"

Now she was laughing. "That's even sadder than your life story!"

"That is _not _true!"

"It's okay," Erza told him, still chuckling. "I knit in my spare time. And try on clothes."

"What? No way! You punch rocks in half like they're nothing!"

"Way."

He stared at her, his face getting redder and redder. Until finally…

Jellal burst out laughing like he'd never laughed before, grabbing his stomach and cracking up so hard it hurt. The laughter was contagious, and pretty soon, both of them were rolling around laughing.

"That…" he gasped, "can _not _be true!"

"Believe it…or not!" Erza tried to catch her breath, but failed.

"You, Scarlet? _Knitting?"_

"You, Jellal? _Sewing?"_

"Oh, man, we're a really sad pair, aren't we?" He wiped his eyes, still shaking from laughter. But then, out of nowhere, he froze.

"Hide! Ultear's back!"

Erza, used to this routine by now, dived into the bushes as yet again, Ultear stomped in.

"What's so funny?" she demanded.

Jellal lied like a pro. "Your face."

She rolled her eyes. "That was _so _bad. Let down your hair!"

"Every day," he mumbled. "Every single freaking day."

"Okay, okay. Let down your share!"

Jellal disappeared from the window.

"One more try. Let down your blare!"

The rope ladder came flying out of the window and whacked Ultear so hard she hit the ground.

"OW!" she yelled. "YOU LITTLE BRAT!"

She charged up the ladder, looking ready to punch Jellal's lights out. (But not kill him – that would destroy her chances of getting that unlimited magic power.)

Erza peeked out from behind the bushes just in time to see him flash her a quick smile. She smiled back, turned bright red, and ran.

And suddenly, for some strange reason, Jellal was really looking forward to the next day.

* * *

><p><strong>These people have <strong>**_really _****bad memories.**

**Ooh, get ready for the ball! It's coming!**

**The dress description just about killed me. I have no fashion sense whatsoever.**

**And now for the review replies:**

**Bookwormswillruletheworld: Yep, Crayik's definitely a brand of crayons. And I don't think Ross reads it… Plus, you shouldn't swear at your pumpkin, it makes them not grow. (lol) And no, I wasn't really expecting anyone else to get it.**

**Spuspu: Wait, it's coming. Next chapter.**

**ForeverDreamer12: Yay, thanks! And…hahaha…**

**Phantom-Pierce Okamoto: I'm really not… But poor Yukino indeed. Even though she's a bit happier now!**

**Mydrugiscoke: Gee, thanks! And I really try, so thank you for saying it's funny!**

**TsukiyomiMichiru: One of the best? Squeee! Thanks so much for saying that!**

**AlexuPenguin: No monsters indeed. And how dare you name a crayon brand that! (lol) But yeah, bring on the GaLe!**

**NutsieDreamer: Nalu always makes a good day. And here's an update for you! Poor Yukino indeed. Gemma did treat her awfully in the anime, too…**

**camicazi1: No dinner for you, Natsu! Wahahaha!**

**ShadowCatMage: Hmmm? Missed what? And this is why Jellal's in the tower. Thank you for loving it!**

**SilentMockingjay: It's always good when your two obsessions are combined. (Crossovers! Yay!) **


	7. And Do I Help Them? No, I Don't

_You were going to marry a man you just met?! Haven't your parents ever taught you about stranger danger?! – _Kristoff_, Frozen_

* * *

><p>Jose had three levels of mad.<p>

There was slightly irritated, which was how he'd feel if some incompetent servant dropped something. The punishment for this was getting fired.

Next was mad, which was how he'd feel if someone actually insulted him. The punishment for this was usually imprisonment and maybe a hanging if the insult was really elaborate.

Finally, we have furious, which was the top level of angry and was rarely ever seen. This is also defined as the _Sweet-Cupcakes-Get-Out-of-the-Way-or-Die _level of mad. The consequences, you do not want to know.

(No, seriously. I told this guy once, and he threw up for an hour. I'm not going to tell you his name, but let's just say poor Bob was never the same ever again…)

(Oh wait. Oops.)

Guess which level Jose was at when he found out his own daughter had ever so slightly, um, _tweaked _the number one rule of the mermaid kingdom.

Yeah. It was bad.

Juvia had been twirling around her secret cavern where she kept all her Gray-themed stuff (okay, so maybe she was a stalker of sorts, but this is Juvia we're talking about), singing the song she'd sung for him, when out of nowhere her peaceful little celebration was interrupted by a furious Jose blasting away the doorway. (Technically, there was supposed to be a rock in front of it, but Juvia had moved that and forgotten to put it back. Shame, it might've delayed Jose enough for her to get away.)

Juvia gasped and dropped her Gray plushie. "F-Father! How… How did you know Juvia was here?"

Jose took in all the Gray décor, eyes narrowing dangerously. "What is the meaning of this?"

"Well, um, that is, er, Juvia…"

"Why have you decorated an entire cave with a picture of a human?!"

"That is a very good question, and if Father would just sit down and let Juvia make him a nice bowl of seaweed soup, he and Juvia can – "

"So it was you," he breathed. "I received a report that said some mermaid had rescued a human, but I never dreamed it would be my own daughter!"

He glared at her, the daggers in his gaze making Juvia back away. "After Gajeel betrayed me, I had hoped you would at least turn out to be a little better."

"Father, Juvia is…"

"SILENCE!" Jose roared. He lifted his trident and pointed it at the wall. "From now on, you are to stay in the castle! You are not to leave for any reason. I will have guards posted outside your room. And you will stay in there until you have learned your lesson – or die!"

Juvia gasped. "Father, no!"

Jose's trident lit up, and he blasted away the entire cave wall. Juvia shrieked and dove in front of her other belongings, begging him to stop, but he mercilessly incinerated everything in the cave, everything that she'd worked so hard to collect and save. He grabbed her arm, nails digging into her skin, dragging her out of the cave.

She screamed.

Juvia could not, would not let him do this. She couldn't be trapped in a room her entire life. She couldn't take never seeing Gray ever again. So she did something desperate. Something that could possibly and probably end up killing her.

She sank her teeth into Jose's arm, making him yell and let go, then swam as fast as she could to the one place she knew he could not, would not follow. The cave of the Sea Witch.

"ARE YOU INSANE?!" Jose screamed wildly. "SHE'LL KILL YOU! SHE'LL TAKE YOUR SOUL FOR HER OWN! DON'T YOU DARE – "

But Juvia never caught the end of that sentence, because she was already in.

She was in the Sea Witch's lair.

xXx

Juvia pressed herself against the wall, shaking and trying to catch her breath. She failed, her gasps turning into big, gulping sobs, and finally broke down, crying her heart out.

Where would she go now? She had no place to stay. There was no one she knew in the mermaid kingdom, since Jose had been extremely overprotective of his one remaining child. No one she could depend on to help her.

No one.

"What's the matter, dearie? Is there something wrong?"

Juvia froze, her sobs sticking in her throat.

_Except, of course, the sea witch herself._

_Deliora._

But that was ridiculous. How in the world could she even think of trusting the sea witch? It was absurd!

"No need to stand out there in the cold, darling. Why don't you come in, and we'll see what'll make your heartbreak better?"

Juvia gulped. Should she…?

"Come in," the voice insisted with a charm that she had no choice but to obey.

She swam into a huge chamber with a large black cauldron in the middle, a figure standing over it. Deliora's back was to her, so she couldn't see the witch's face, but somehow, Juvia knew she was smiling.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't the little mermaid princess," Deliora purred, turning to face her. The witch's bottom half was octopus rather than fish, and her skin was gray, something Juvia pondered for a single second before the witch spoke again.

"And what is it that you desire, my dear?"

"J-Juvia doesn't really desire anything," Juvia stammered. "Juvia means… She was just trying to find a place to hide…"

"From your father, of course." Deliora's voice was silky smooth, every word poised and perfect. "Don't you worry at all, hon, I'll fix everything up in no time. For a _price, _of course."

Juvia shook her head. She now knew that this had been a terrible idea. "N-No, no need to do that, Juvia will leave…"

"But you can't leave. Where will you go? Back to the castle, where you'll be kept pining for your lost love all your life?" The witch raised an eyebrow at her. "Leaving that pirate captain of yours sighing and heartsick all his life as well?"

She knew she shouldn't be happy, but Juvia's heart jumped. "W-What do you mean?"

"I mean that there's a certain mermaid girl Captain Gray is searching for, and if my guess is correct, that girl would be you. Or am I not right?"

Juvia didn't reply.

"Dearie, what have you got to lose? Here, I'll make you an offer. I'll turn you into a human girl for five days. If you can get that boy of yours to kiss you in that time span, you'll live happily ever after. And if not…"

"If not?" Juvia breathed.

"Then you'll belong to _me." _Deliora's smile was terrifying. "But of course, you'll be able to, won't you?"

Juvia slowly looked her in the eye. "Is that all?"

"Well, there is just one more thing. I need your voice in exchange."

Juvia's fingers touched her throat. "My voice? Why? And without my voice, how can I…"

"You have your looks, dear!" Deliora waved it off. "You're a very pretty girl, you know? It shouldn't be that hard! And I need your voice for the spell. It's one of the ingredients, stops the spell from working on some random girl instead of you."

Juvia knew she shouldn't. She knew this would end badly. But then her future with Jose flashed through her mind: trapped in a room in a castle for the rest of her life, never being able to swim free again, never being able to do _anything _again. Signing papers, doing homework forever and ever, being Jose's _perfect machine…_

_Marrying someone who wasn't Gray._

It was that last thought that made her look Deliora firmly in the eye and take her outstretched hand.

"I accept."

And the sea witch smiled a cold, cold smile.

"Then let's get started."

xXx

There was a reason Gajeel was not fond of many people. Actually, there were many reasons.

Number one, they were loud. They talked too much and never seemed to listen.

Number two, they lied. People would lie to get whatever they wanted. Sure, there were exceptions, but he'd never bothered with people enough to meet one.

Number three, he'd had to deal with too many of them already. As the former mermaid prince, he'd had to do a lot of foreign relations stuff.

Mainly among mermaids, seeing as there was an entire law on how you weren't supposed to chat with other species, which his sister had just violated. (A fact he was as yet unaware of.)

Which was why, heartily tired of the whole thing, he'd gone and broken into the sea witch's lair and stolen one of her potions. Since he had no idea how to use it, it gave him legs, but also webbed feet. Like a duck's.

It was kind of sad, to be honest. This was also another reason why he didn't like socializing with people.

Which was why Gajeel had retired to a quiet spot in the woods where he didn't have to deal with too many people. This worked extremely well until the girl with the red cloak came by.

Gajeel was awakened on that day by someone banging on his door.

"It appears that we have a visitor," his cat, Pantherlily, noted with interest. Gajeel groaned from his bed.

"Tell 'em to go away."

"If you insist," Pantherlily shrugged, and yelled, "GO AWAY!"

The banging stopped. For about three seconds. Then it started up again, even louder than before.

"Why won't it stop?!" Gajeel moaned.

"I suggest you go open it and see what they want. They'd probably run away at the sight of you, though."

The woodcutter grumbled and complained, but finally got out of bed and dragged himself to the door. (The banging was getting unbearable.) He whipped it open, scowling his scariest scowl.

"What."

"Hi," said the short blue-haired girl at the door. "I was wondering if you – "

"No. Whatever it is you're selling, I don't want any. Even if they're Girl Scout cookies." Gajeel slammed the door in her face.

The banging started up again.

Growling, he yanked it open. "I said, I don't want any of what you're selling!"

"I'm not selling anything, I just wanted to ask you if you knew – "

"I know I want you to leave. So _do it."_

He slammed the door and made it halfway across the kitchen before it started up _again._

Gajeel was really beginning to hate that girl.

Ignoring Pantherlily's snickers, he opened the door and growled, "_NOW."_

The girl's gaze was firm. "Not until you tell me which way to go to get to my grandmother's house."

He facepalmed. "I don't know who your grandmother is, shrimp. Now go the heck away."

"Porlyusica. I know you know her. I helped her deliver a batch of cookies here. Problem is, I can't remember which way to go to get back."

"And I should help you because…?"

"I'll go away if you do."

The idea was appealing. "Fine. Go straight north until you see the honey tree, then turn left. Keep going that way until you see her cottage. Now leave."

"All right, fine. Sheesh. You don't have to be such a grump about things. And do _not _call me shrimp!"

"Whatever," he grumbled, closing the door yet again. "And don't come back."

He was immediately met by Pantherlily's accusing gaze.

"What?" Gajeel growled, glaring at his cat.

"You told her to go to Porlyusica's? From here?"

"Uh, that's what she asked me to do, if you didn't hear."

"Gajeel." Pantherlily's eyes were hard. "There are wolves all over the place there."

"So? That's her problem, not mine."

"It's going to be your problem when Porlyusica bursts in here ranting about how you let her granddaughter get eaten by a wolf."

Gajeel sighed exasperatedly. "So whattaya want me to _do_ about it?"

His cat just raised an eyebrow.

Gajeel's eyes widened. "You're not serious."

"Unless you want her death on your conscience…"

"You _cannot _be serious."

"Oh, I'm serious, all right. Now get going."

Gajeel groaned and picked up his axe. "You're going to keep bothering me until I follow her, aren't you?"

"That I am."

He stomped outside. "I hate you so much."

Pantherlily just smiled.

Gajeel sighed, and began running.

"HEY, SHRIMP! WAIT UP!"

* * *

><p><strong>… And there he goes!<strong>

**Yup, Gajeel's a mermaid prince. YOU JUST KNOW HE'S GOING TO GET TEASED ABOUT THIS LATER.**

**Hey, how about that new FT chapter, huh? Thank cake for Cancer. (The Celestial Spirit, you know, not the disease.)**

**And now for the review replies!**

**ForeverDreamer12: It was fun writing him in a dress. And oh, the hilarity of Jellal sewing. WHICH HE WOULD TOTALLY DO NOW THAT I THINK ABOUT IT.**

**PhantomPierce-Okamoto: Those scenes are very fun to write, yes.**

**Bookworms will rule the world: Nope, never watched that movie. And he was yelling Crayik at the pumpkin, so yeah. I dunno, she probably has kidnapped Rapunzel too.**

**SpuSpu: Ah, yes, Jerza is very fun to do. And thank you, I try hard to make my characters somewhat realistic. (But not to the point where they won't blow stuff up… hahaha….)**

**AlexuPenguin: Now imagine him in a pink poofy dress and laugh. Maybe Ultear has an obsession with parsely. Who knows? And you're very welcome, Nature. Hope you feel better soon!**

**XxanimegrimreapergirlxX: Thank you!**

**Johnny Spectre: …somehow, I can too. Huh.**

**whitedragon2645: Oh, thank you! And I thought a lot about the story selections, so that's a relief. Here's your update!**

**NutsieDreamer: I really love that movie, for some reason. I like the Disney play even better. But no, don't think I can add him in… (thinks) Hmm, maybe a cameo. Yeah. I could do that. And yes, dresses are automatically fashionable. And yes, Gemma is completely evil.**

**camacazi1: That's right, I'M the ruler! Wahahaha! (cough cough) (drinks glass of water because evil laughs give me sore throats)**

**thefourteenthdarkone: Ah, fudge! Okay, went back and changed it. It should be Flare. (I'm too used to writing Angel because Fairy Academy.) Sorry! And thank you for loving it! (Yeah, I keep spelling it "tail" too…)**

**That's all, so **

**Water, out**


	8. Don't Be My Guest

_"This is Annabeth. She normally doesn't judo-flip people." – Rick Riordan, _The Mark of Athena

* * *

><p>"WHAT ARE THESE PEOPLE DOING IN MY CASTLE?!"<p>

Everyone jumped.

"Oh dear," Freed sighed.

"I told you this would happen," the duster said grumpily.

"How'd he _hear _us from up there?" Bixlow asked in disbelief.

Mira wasn't paying attention to any of this. Mostly because stomping into the room was…

"IT'S BIGFOOT!" Elfman screamed girlishly, falling off his chair in a very unmanly way.

The… _organism _that was currently scowling at them did look a lot like how one would expect Bigfoot to look, with shaggy tan hair, beady black eyes, and an unfortunate underbite. Mira was beginning to seriously consider the fact that her younger brother might be right when the Bigfoot-creature pointed at them and growled,

"I asked you what they were doing in my castle!"

"Well, Laxus, er, the thing is…" Freed stammered.

"They're in here because, uh, we kind of, uh…" Bixlow added unhelpfully.

"We're screwed," the duster sighed.

Mira stood up, completely unfazed. This must be the owner of the castle, and it was only polite to introduce oneself upon meeting your host. No one ever said Mira was uncivilized, so of course, she curtsied politely, saying,

"My name is Mirajane Strauss, and these are my younger brother and sister, Elfman and Lisanna. It's very nice to meet you, Mr. Laxus."

He glared at her. "Get out."

Well, _that _was very nice of him to say.

Mira kept her voice even. "Excuse me, but as I recall, it's only polite to allow your guests to finish dining before asking them to leave."

Laxus stared at her. "What?"

"I said, it's only polite to allow your guests to finish dining before asking them to leave." Mira folded her arms, staring him down. There were two reasons she wasn't leaving this place under any circumstances, and they were: A) It had begun raining outside and she had no intention of sleeping out in that, thank you very much, and B) The food was really, really good.

Laxus's eyes narrowed. "And I said get out. Now."

"I'm sorry, but no."

"Excuse me?"

"No."

"Get out!"

"_No."_

Laxus gritted his teeth. How dare she disobey his direct orders?

He stepped forward and grabbed her arm. "_Leave," _he growled through gritted teeth. "Or I'll _throw _you out."

Mira eyed him calmly. "I'm sorry, but I can't do that."

And then she grabbed his arm and judo-flipped him over her shoulder.

_With one hand._

It was at the same time the most incredible and terrifying thing everyone else had ever seen.

"When did she learn how to do that?!" Elfman asked, dumbfounded.

Bixlow inched away slowly. "Remind me not to mess with her in the future."

"Ditto," Lisanna agreed, wide-eyed.

Laxus stared at her from his position on the ground. "Did you just… _flip me?"_

"Yup," she replied with a smile, then sat down to continue her dinner as if nothing had happened. "This cake is really good. Who made it?"

No one replied. They were too busy staring at Laxus, who climbed to his feet, scowling. He stomped over to Mira, and everyone held their breath, bracing themselves for the inevitable fight.

"One night."

"Hmm?" She looked up, raising an eyebrow.

"You can stay for one night."

Everyone else's jaws dropped.

"What?" Bixlow gaped.

'We can stay?" Elfman asked. "YES! LAXUS IS A MAN!"

Mira just smiled. "That's very kind of you. Thank you."

"But only because you beat me fair and square!" Laxus snapped. " And you'd better leave the next day!"

"Understood," she replied. "Now are you going to eat dinner or not? A good argument always makes me hungry. Aren't you?"

Laxus eyed her suspiciously, then sat down slowly. "Fine. Whatever."

All the objects' eyes had started shining again.

"She's awesome!" Bixlow whispered reverently.

Mira smiled. She happened to agree.

xXx

Captain Gray was pacing back and forth across the deck.

That's right. Again.

His feet were sore, but whatever. He didn't think he could stand sitting still.

Actually, it turned out to be a good thing he was so obsessed with pacing the deck. Because it was while pacing the deck that he looked over at the beach…

And saw someone passed out on it.

A someone who just so happened to be (ahem) a _girl._

As in, maybe the girl who'd saved his life that one time.

As in, the girl who was possibly (okay, _definitely) _in love with.

So you can understand why Gray's heart immediately stopped, resulting in him not looking where he was going, resulting in him tripping over a rope, which resulted in him grabbing the first thing in sight to keep him from falling, which happened to be that rope thing you pull to fire a cannon. Which, of course, immediately fired off said cannon, making Gray fall flat on his backside.

Which actually really hurt, come to think of it.

But Gray wasn't paying attention to the pain, because he'd already picked himself up by this time and dived into the ocean like a complete idiot, much to the shock and horror of his poor, dedicated first mate, Smee.

"CAP'N!" Smee screamed, dropping whatever he was holding. (Luckily, it was a box of ballast, which basically consisted of just rocks.) "NOT AGAIN!"

The other pirates just stared and wondered if their captain was finally going off the deep end.

(Except for Wendy and Carla, who used this opportunity to flee from the boat, not that anyone noticed. Or cared.)

Gray paddled toward the beach, apparently not knowing (or caring) about the fact that his pirates all thought he was demented. He reached the beach running and dropped to his knees next to the girl.

She was unconscious, her blue hair somehow perfect even though she'd obviously just washed up on the beach somehow. (Which, come to think of it, can really ruin your hair.) Was she even still alive?

"Hey, are you okay?" he asked softly. _Please let her still be alive. Please let her still be alive._

And then his hopes were granted when she opened her eyes.

Gave a silent shriek.

Then passed out again.

Gray blinked. He didn't look THAT scary, did he?

"Um," he said, poking her in the cheek. "Are you okay?"

By this point, the pirates had arrived at the beach in a rowboat they had. They crowded around Gray and the girl, who still refused to wake up.

"Um." Smee blinked at her. "Is she dead?"

"No. She woke up, then passed out again," Gray replied.

"Oh. Why'd she do that?"

"I have _no _idea."

"It's love!" Chelia sang happily, to which Gray responded with a scathing look.

At which point, the girl woke up again.

She opened her mouth, but no sound came out. Closed it. Blinked in shock.

"Hey, are you okay?" Gray asked again. "What's your name?"

She opened her mouth again as if to reply, but nothing came out. Her hand went to her throat.

"You can't talk?" he questioned, and she nodded. Gray sighed, disappointed; that meant she couldn't be the girl who saved him.

"Um, okay. So… you wanna… eat something? We have food on the ship…"

(Because Gray was nothing if not a gentleman. EVEN IF HE WAS A PIRATE.)

Her eyes lit up, and she nodded. Gray turned to his pirates.

"Well, looks like we have a new guest coming to visit! Get out the food – "

At which point, Natsu decided to crash the party.

"GRAY YOU ICE-FREAK YOU WILL PAY FOR INTERRUPTING OUR QUIET TIME!"

Gray stepped neatly to the side, letting the flying boy faceplant into the sand. "What're you on about now, Matchstick?"

Natsu jumped to his feet. "YOU INTERRUPTED OUR QUIET TIME! DO YOU KNOW HOW HARD IT IS TO STOP TOODLES FROM CRYING IF YOU WAKE HIM UP BEFORE THE HOUR IS UP?! NO, YOU DON'T! YOU'LL PAY FOR THIS, GRAY!"

"Since when," Gray asked in a disgusted voice, "have I ever interrupted your stupid quiet time?"

"Uh, just now, idiot! You fired off that cannon of yours!"

"What? What're you talking about?"

"Hello? It was YOUR cannon!"

Then Gray faintly recalled tripping and firing off a cannon. Oops.

"Oh. Well, then, what do you want me to do about it?"

"Let's have a fight! Right here, right now!"

Natsu cracked his knuckles, getting ready for a huge brawl. Gray never turned down the opportunity to attempt to kick his butt, even if they did usually just ended up tying. But then…

"Nah, maybe next time. I'm busy now."

Natsu's jaw dropped. "What?"

Gray rolled his eyes irritably. "I said, I'm busy, idiot!"

"Oh yeah? And what're you so busy about these days?" Natsu demanded, folding his arms across his chest.

"Like you need to know." Gray turned to his crew. "C'mon, guys. We need to get back to the ship."

Natsu's jaw dropped as Gray walked away from him without another word.

_Gray walked away without even trying to fight him._

Natsu made a mental note to check on the water in the ocean, because there was _obviously _something wrong with his rival. (It wasn't as if they were friends now or anything! It'd just be really boring if Gray died!)

"So, uh, what do we do now?" Romeo asked, breaking the silence.

Natsu stared at his rival and the girl next to him. "We gotta investigate! I think Gray's sick!"

One of the pirates overheard him and laughed. Natsu's eyes narrowed.

"Well? He _is, _isn't he?"

"Oh, our captain isn't sick," Chelia replied airily. She smiled.

"Just _lovesick."_

* * *

><p><strong>FIRST OF ALL, SORRY.<strong>

**SECOND OF ALL, SORRY.**

**THIRD OF ALL, I'M REALLY SORRY!**

**I've been out of town for the last week, so I didn't have my computer, so I couldn't update! I'M SORRY!**

**But I finally finished it so... HERE HAVE A CHAPTER I'M SO SORRY ARGH.**

**Chelia is so right.**

**And yes, Mira would flip Laxus. She would.**

**You know, I just noticed – I have Lucy as Wendy, Wendy as Juliet, and Romeo as Romeo.**

**Huh.**

**Oh, and I keep forgetting to say this, but THANK YOU SO MUCH TO ALL WHO REVIEWED!**

**YOU ALL MAKE ME WARM AND HAPPY INSIDE THANK YOU SO MUCH!**

**And now for the review replies!**

**whitedragon2645: Yeah, it just seemed to fit. Have an update!**

**PhantomPierce-Okamoto: She is evil. Very evil. But when you're a stalker, you gotta have you stalking time.**

**AnimeOnCookie: FOREVER.**

**NutsieDreamer: It seemed appropriate. As for why, I have no idea. And yup, Jose is and always will be a jerk.**

**thefourteenthdarkone: When the scary guy's a mermaid prince. We can all go home now.**

**camacazi1: Pantherlily is a ninja secret matchmaker mind-reader.**

**Louise24Zoldyck: Oh yes, I TOTALLY ship Miraxus. And yes, there is going to be more. FOR SURE.**

**Smile for the potato: Gajeel…mermaid…princess…. (dies laughing)**

**BookProf101: He is. And Levy can get REALLY elaborate with teasing. She's a genius after all. And YES, Natsu will ALWAYS come back to Lucy. May any fanfiction you receive be awesome as well!**

**ForeverDreamer12: Things shall be on fire soon.**

**Zero: Thank you so much!**

**sana: GASP REALLY THANK YOU! And I'm sure you'd be able to do a good job! Don't give up! And being high on faith, trust, and happy dust is fun.**

**Maria: Here's the next chapter! **

**meow goes a cat: Mmm, sorry, no StiYu in this chapter, nya. I apologize, but it's coming soon! (Nya)**

**Well, that's all, so**

**Water, out**


	9. I Know You

_"I know you, I walked with you once upon a dream..."_

* * *

><p>Sting was bored.<p>

Very bored, in fact. So bored that he'd actually tried to spike the punch bowl.

(He'd failed. Mostly because Rogue had shown up out of nowhere and given him a Look. The kind that went, _Really, dude? That's pathetic._)

_She_ still wasn't here yet. The ball had started an hour ago.

So, here he was, Sting Eucliffe, prince of Pixie Hollow, sitting in the corner and hoping against hope that no one would find him there, and also that the girl would show up already so he'd have something to do. Sting was so bored that he actually reverted to his old habits and started biting his nails.

(It _definitely _wasn't because he was nervous or anything. No way. Uh-uh. He was perfectly calm. Totally.)

But then, of course, he couldn't be left alone to his misery (and boredom). Before he could even begin to contemplate the merits of just getting up and leaving the stupid party (but then again, his father would kill him, and he wouldn't get to see _her_ again), a screechy voice demanded, "Aren't you the prince?"

Sting immediately looked up, trying to act like he hadn't just been chewing on his fingernails like a total dork. "Um. Yeah?"

If he were to be entirely honest, the girl in front of him was terrifying. She had makeup slathered all over her face in a quantity that makeup should never be in, and the simpering smile on her face was so fake, it looked painted on. (Technically, it could've been; with all that makeup he didn't know anymore.) Sting instinctively inched away from her.

The girl took no heed of this and plopped down beside him on one of the faincy-shmancy chairs the king and queen had gotten from somewhere. She flashed that fake smile again, and Sting was seriously considering screaming for help. And dialing 911.

"So," she began. "I'm Minerva."

No doubt she would've gone on further if something hadn't happened at that exact moment. Something big. Something that Sting would repeatedly thank sugar for again and again in the years to come.

The arrival of a new guest. A gorgeous one who looked _decidedly _familiar.

Sting's eyes widened, and as if in a trance, he got up. The girl who'd just arrived looked nervous, fiddling with her mask and the lace on her dress. She looked around as if searching for someone, biting her lip.

"Hey, where're you going?" Minerva demanded, but Sting ignored her. He walked up to the girl, palms sweating. But he definitely wasn't nervous! No way!

Aw, man.

Who was he kidding?

Sting Eucliffe was _beyond _nervous. Because _what if she didn't remember him?_

But then all that was forgotten, because…

_Their eyes met_.

Hers widened in recognition.

And a grin tugged at the corners of his mouth as he whispered, "Hey."

xXx

"Why in the world are you even here?" Levy demanded, folding her arms across her chest.

"Because I have to be," Gajeel grumbled back. "Don't you think I've got better things to do than to accompany random girls to their grandmothers' houses?"

"I didn't ask you to go with me. I asked for directions. You were the one who felt the need to come charging after me."

"That wasn't my fault. There are wolves in this part of the forest, you know."

"So I've heard. But I can take care of myself."

"Uh-huh. Definitely. Because I'm supposed to believe that a shrimp like you can kick the butt of a wolf four feet tall, now."

"Why shouldn't you believe in the truth?"

"The truth? Don't give me that load of cake crumbs, shrimp, you and I both know that you couldn't beat up an ant."

Levy scowled and squished an ant crawling up a tree. "You were saying? And don't call me shrimp!"

Gajeel folded his arms. "Oh, come on, now. There wasn't any need to take out your anger on the poor ant."

"Excuse me? If anything, it's your fault. You're the one who said I couldn't beat up an ant!"

"It was an exaggeration."

"That was an emphasis."

"… What?"

"What?"

"What?"

Levy threw up her hands. "Argh! If you have to tag along, couldn't you be less annoying?"

"You're the one saying things normal people can't understand!"

She gave a short, derisive laugh. "What part of you is normal?"

Gajeel scowled at her. "Excuse me, I am completely normal."

"Uh, you're a hermit who lives alone in the woods with a cat, and you don't like Girl Scout cookies. I'll say that's enough to qualify you as not normal."

And she didn't even know about the mermaid part. "I'll admit that I'm fairly unsociable, but I'm perfectly normal, thank you very much."

"Prove it."

Gajeel raised an eyebrow at her. "… Do you really want me to?"

Levy thought about it for a moment. "Point taken. How far are we, anyway?"

He just pointed to the cottage standing directly in front of them.

Levy stared at it. "Ah."

"Yeah."

"How did I not see that?"

"You're blind."

"I am not. I can read faster than you, I'll bet."

"And a very useful skill that is, I must say."

She stared at him. "Wait, are you being sarcastic?"

"Whatever," he sighed. "Since you're here, safe and sound, I'm going to take off. I need to take a nap. Your annoyingness has totally worn me out."

"Oh, and what about you? You're a total wacko jerk."

"Am not."

"Are too."

"Am not."

"Are too."

"Argh! Just go inside already, okay?"

"Fine. Well, I guess this is goodbye."

Gajeel sighed. "Not really. Tell me whenever you're headed here again. I'll take ya."

"What? Why in the world would you – "

"Because my cat's going to turn into an absolute jerk if I don't, that's why. Well, seeya, shrimp."

Gajeel turned and headed into the woods. The last words he heard were:

"DON'T CALL ME SHRIMP!"

xXx

"Romeo," Natsu asked, "where do you go all the time?"

It was the week after Gray had totally turned down Natsu's challenge. The flying boy had been sulking about that the whole week, but apparently, he'd decided to move on now and divert his attention to other matters.

Romeo started, eyes widening. "U-Uh, whattaya mean, where do I go? I don't go anywhere!"

"Yeah, you do," Lucy chimed in. "You're always late whenever Natsu calls a meeting or something."

"I'm almost starting to think you and one of Gray's pirates are planning to overthrow us or something!" Natsu joked, not noticing how the sentence made his Lost Boy go unnaturally pale.

"What?! Me? No way!" Romeo forced a laugh. It sounded more like he was choking.

Lucy gave him a worried look. "Romeo, are you sick?"

"Um."

Surprisingly enough, his savior came in the form of Happy. "NATSU! LOOK WHAT I BROUGHT FOR DINNER!"

"Awesome!" Natsu's eyes lit up as he completely forgot about Romeo. "Fish!"

The Lost Boy breathed a sigh of relief and vowed to thank Happy with a million fishes later.

Too soon, unfortunately.

While Natsu was distracted, Lucy gave him a smile. "You know, Romeo, I saw you leave the other day."

"M-Me? Whattaya mean?" he asked nervously.

"I was curious, since you're always leaving and stuff. So I followed you."

Romeo gulped. This was not good. "And?"

"And I saw exactly what you were doing."

His eyes widened, and with a terrified look at his leader, the Lost Boy begged, "Please don't tell Natsu!"

Lucy laughed. "Are you serious? Of course I won't! It's just like a fairy tale!"

"R-Really?"

"Yeah! And if you haven't noticed, I like stories. I'm not going to rat you out." Lucy glanced at Natsu, who was now chatting away with Happy on the best ways to cook a fish. "But you'd better be careful. Natsu's going to go ballistic if he finds out."

Romeo sighed. "Don't I know it."

"But don't worry. I'll make sure he doesn't."

His eyes lit up. "Thanks a million, Lucy! But I'd better get going now. It's about time for… you know."

Romeo was in the doorway before he paused and looked back. "Oh, yeah, Lucy?"

"Yeah?"

"You know, it's a really good thing you came. Natsu needs someone to keep him in check." His eyes sparkled with mischief. "Now that I think about it, you two should really get together…"

Lucy flushed and threw a crayon at him. He ducked it and ran outside, laughing.

"But you really should think about it, you know!"

* * *

><p><strong>I agree with Romeo. Definitely.<strong>

**Oh, yeah. As for the update schedule, it's probably going to be once a week. That's how it's been for a while, and that's probably how it's going to be from now on, unless I say otherwise.**

**And to my amazing reviewers:**

**Smile for the potato: Yeah, book references are probably going to be everywhere in this thing. Because books are awesome. And so is Annabeth.**

**ForeverDreamer12: GASP, REALLY?! OMIGOSH THANK YOU SO MUCH! I really don't deserve it, but thank you so much!**

**thefourteenthdarkone: Thank you so much for saying that! (Blushes) But I'm not that amazing, really!**

**Deathslayer Night: Thanks for saying so!**

**Digi-fanCatt: Gray's did.**

**Nerdyninjagirl3: I do it too, to be entirely honest. But it was the first thing that came to mind. No offense to any knitters and seamsters/seamstresses out there, because I do that too!**

**camacazi1: That's so true. **

**DaisyDreamer95: A magical StiYu part has appeared.**

**Louise24Zoldyc: Oh, sorry, no Gruvia here… But it's coming, don't worry!**

**NutsieDreamer: Ah, sorry, but a double update would take double the time… And no one wants that! **

**Aw, man, you're right, I should've done that! It would've been a nice touch. Sigh…**

**And yes, Bixlow does happen to be the most sane here, now that I think about it. Huh. **

**Gray is blind. Because… He is.**

**OMIGOSH YES. I WILL DO THAT. THAT'S AN AWESOME IDEA. I MUST DO THAT.**

**And yes, yes they do!**

**FanGirlofDeath: Really? Thanks! Never watched Bleach, but I'll take a look.**

**PhantomPierce-Okamoto: Mira is an amazing character and she shall always remain that way. Unless, of course, Mashima ruins her – BUT HE WOULDN'T DARE.**

**meow goes a cat: StiYu part, right here! And Natsu should never, ever change.**

**Guest: I have a feeling you and NutsieDreamer are the same person as your reviews are strangely alike, so I direct you to that review reply.**

**Maria: I will continue!**

**YaoiFanaticFreak: Go Mira!**

**KEwT: Says the person who couldn't even write a review using correct grammar. And you obviously haven't read the story, because I distinctly recall putting in quite a few cliffhangers… Chapter 4, for instance.**

**BookProf101: YES STIYU RULES!**

**Water, out**


	10. IT'S A TRAP!

_Rapunzel, rapunzel, let down your…OOF! – Flynn Rider, Tangled bloopers_

Erza was daydreaming about a certain blue-haired person when out of nowhere, someone tapped her on the shoulder.

This being Erza, of course, she couldn't just shriek and jump like a normal person. Oh no. That'd be much too cliché.

Instead, she shrieked, jumped, and then punched the person in the nose. Hard.

"OW!"

Erza's eyes widened. "_Natsu?!"_

"Whad was dad for?!" the pink-haired flying boy yelled, hand clamped over his bleeding nose.

"Sweet cupcakes! Natsu, are you okay?!" A girl with butter-yellow hair exploded out of the forest, looking stunned. "What in the world did you say to her?!"

"I dunno!"

"Sorry!" Erza helped Natsu to his feet. "How many times have I told you not to startle me?"

"Fibdy-seben," he muttered, which she took to mean "Fifty-seven." "I wanded do innoduce you to Lucy. She's our dew Lod Boy."

Erza looked from Lucy to Natsu. "Um, Natsu, hate to break it to you, but she's hardly a boy."

He shrugged. "I duddo whad else do call her."

Erza decided to give him her suggestion as simply as possible. "Uh… What about Lost _Girl_?"

Natsu looked stunned. "Oh."

"Yeah."

"So, um, you're Erza?" Lucy asked politely. "I'm Lucy, like Natsu just said. It's nice to meet you."

Erza stared at her. "You're not insane."

"Um. Yes?"

"You're not psycho, either."

"Uh, yeah, I would hope not to be."

"You're pretty much perfectly normal."

"Well, I guess."

"Then why in the world would you not mind living with this idiot?"

"Hey!" Natsu protested.

Lucy looked at Natsu. Then at Erza. Then she thought of all the crazy things she'd seen him do. (There'd been one occasion where he'd tried to eat _fire_.)

She blinked. "I have no idea."

Erza nodded. It was easier than trying to figure it all out.

"That's not nice," Natsu grumbled. "But I've got something else to tell you, Erza."

"Hmm? What?"

He folded his arms. "I saw you chatting with Jellal the other day."

Her jaw dropped. "How in the world did you – "

"Never mind how I know." Suddenly, inexplicably, all the fun in his eyes vanished, to replaced by a hard look that definitely did not fit Natsu. Which was probably why it worried her. "You shouldn't hang around him too much. That guy's bad news."

Erza responded with a hard stare of her own. "Oh? In what way?"

"I can't say much more than this, but he works for a really scary group of people. A group of people that'd like nothing more than to see the island destroyed."

She couldn't believe her ears. "Destroy the island? Jellal would never – "

"That's what you think. But these guys are scary. Really scary. And if you don't believe me, think about who it's coming from." Natsu leaned forward. "And if you still don't believe me, then next time you see him – because I know you're not going to listen to me and will probably run off to see him first chance you get – mention an organization called the Villains. See if he reacts."

Erza would've laughed it off if it'd been anyone else. But this was Natsu Dragneel. He wouldn't lie about something like this.

Would he?

"And that's all I got to say." In a flash, Natsu was back to his old, grinning self. "Hey, Lucy! We'd better get back to the hideout – it's almost Quiet Time! Don't you have to work on your novel?"

"H-How in the world did you – "

"C'mon!"

Lucy ran after him. "Uh… Bye, Erza! It was nice meeting you!"

Erza didn't reply. She was already marching off to Jellal's tower.

xXx

"Jellal!" Erza called softly. "Jellal?"

No response. But then again, that was what usually happened.

She picked up a rock and tossed it through the window, like she always did. Usually, Jellal would've leaned out a second later and flung it back. (He was a bit of a neat-freak.) But this time, for some strange reason, he didn't. Instead, his voice came wafting out of the window.

"Here, catch. I'm in the middle of doing something."

The ladder dropped to the ground. Her heart hammering with the question she had to ask, Erza climbed the rungs up to the window and swung herself inside.

Jellal hadn't been kidding when he'd told her he didn't have a lot of stuff. The floor was almost completely bare, the only furniture a bed, a desk, and a chair. The walls, however, were full of pictures: crude drawings in crayon on the left, beautifully shaded sketches on the right. She guessed that he'd probably put the earlier ones on the left, and judging from the date on one of them, he'd been drawing them since he was around five.

Erza had barely managed to process this before something slammed into her head, hard. The room started spinning, and she knew something was wrong.

Something was very wrong.

The last thing she saw was Ultear leaning over her, a smile on her lips.

"Sweet dreams," she cackled in Jellal's voice, and the world went black.

xXx

Romeo was late.

Wendy sat on a rock by the waterfall and let out a sigh. The water pounded down onto the rocks, making a roar so loud that only someone standing right next to her could hear her. So of course, she decided to have a little fun.

"Romeo, oh, Romeo," she sighed, like in one of the medieval romance novels Chelia was always reading. "Where art thou, Romeo?"

"Uh, I'm right here," a voice said from directly behind her, making Wendy shriek and jump a foot in the air. Unlike Erza, however, she just whirled around to see Romeo and Happy, who were both staring at her as if she were deranged.

Wendy could feel her face heating up. "Um. That was… Um…"

Romeo waved it away, much to her relief. "It's okay. Where's Carla?"

"Oh, she'll be here in a minute. She went back to grab some food for a picnic, since Gray apparently found his lost love or something and they're throwing a party over there."

He blinked. "Gray did what?"

So Wendy had to explain about the girl they'd found on the beach and how Gray'd decided to take her to the ship, and how the pirates had decided to have a party for whatever reason. "I didn't want to be there when they broke out the alchohol," she finished. "I mean, most of them have stopped, but there's still one or two, and they usually cause some kind of huge fight."

"Shouldn't you be there if there's going to be a fight? You're good with medicine and stuff."

"Nah, Chelia can handle it. And I'm not going to be able to get away tomorrow, so…"

"Huh? Why not?"

"Lyon's coming. You know, Gray's brother? So all the pirates have to be in attendance because those two always have some kind of crazy game, and if Carla and I aren't there, the sides'll be uneven." Wendy let out a sigh. "Those two are so _competitive."_

Romeo nodded in agreement. "Remember that one time they had a pillow fight? The mermaids were picking feathers out of their hair every time they surfaced for weeks."

"Ugh, don't remind me."

The peaceful moment was shattered when Carla swooped in.

"Wendy!" she hissed. "You have to get back to the ship _right now! _It's urgent!"

**ARGH I'M SORRY IT'S SO SHORT BUT LIFE GOT IN THE WAY.**

**Hey, look, main plotline finally made it's appearance. Lots of cliffhangers! Yay…**

**Now for the review replies…**

**Bookwormswillruletheworld: Oh, uh… Glances at chapter. Oops. **

**And yeah, I saw it. ARGH WATER AND FIRE WHAT NO WHAT KIND OF ENDING IS THAT?!**

**crimson sana: Yes, yes, I will! And your hint is actually in the chapter, so…**

**Deathslayer Night: Ahahahahaha….**

**ultimateninja44: RoWen for the win!**

**Digi-fanCatt: Romeo: Okay, thanks! (Tries to read notes.) Wait.**

**SashaMonroe: I'm glad you like it!**

**Louise24Zoldyck: A wild update has appeared!**

**camacazi1: Yup! But the ending hopefully won't be the same….**

**NutsieDreamer: Special shout-out to you for always leaving the longest reviews and making me smile like an idiot!**

**And sweet cupcakes, I would be worried if it ended the same. Oh dear.**

**Oh, man, it would be fun to do that, but I wanted to get in some Lucy and Levy friendship stuff so… NEXT TIME.**

**And yes, they will do that, actually!**

**Phantom-PierceOkamoto: Mashima, you stay away from Natsu or you shall pay. **

**thefourteenthdarkone: Yes, they should, they should.**

**AND OMIJELLYBEANS, YOU ARE?! YOU'RE A WONDERFUL PERSON AND I LOVE YOU FOR DOING THAT THANK YOU SO MUCH I CAN'T BELIEVE ANYONE WOULD BE NICE ENOUGH TO DO THAT!**

**And oh! Jerza! Huh.**

**Kittylulz: Thank you, and I will!**

**Canadian Aspiring Author: Oh, are they OOC? Ooooopssss. And yes, actually, the storylines will all combine. Sooner or later.**

**FanGirlofDeath: It's okay, my updates are kind of screwy too. I hope your friend is pleased! Here, have some Jerza! And your change of pen name has been noted.**

**Maria: I will continue!**

**NutsieDreamer(Guest): Sweet cupcakes, that would be hilarious. I'll do that!**

**ForeverDreamer12: Romeo, the matchmaking genius.**

**EpicOtakuCherry: Chocolate cupcakes, thank you so much for saying that! (coughit'sBixlowcough)**

**meow goes a cat: Thank you! (meow) I'm really glad you like it!**

**jovysanchez17: I thought Peter Pan worked really well for them, so I'm glad you think so too! And Gray and Juvia are adorable.**

**Animal: Levy, you evil, ant-killing… uh… person!**


	11. Surprise!

_Who's afraid of the big bad wolf?_

* * *

><p>"I can't believe he kicked us out."<p>

Lisanna folded her arms, following her older sister to who knows where. "Where're we going to stay now?"

"Don't worry, Lisanna, we'll find a place," was Mira's (as always) cheery reply. "We did agree to stay only one night."

"You could've judo-flipped him again," Lisanna pointed out. "It worked the first time."

"Yes, I could have, but that would've been terribly impolite."

"Wasn't it terribly impolite the first time?"

"Well, you see, that time I was obligated to teach him some manners, so it was a matter of duty."

"… I see."

Lisanna glanced backward, worried. Elfman hadn't said a single word since they'd left Laxux's castle.

"Elfman? Are you okay?"

He startled, looking up, and she was shocked to see the exhaustion in his eyes.

"'m fine," he muttered, yawning. "Didn't sleep that much."

Even Mira seemed surprised by this statement; Elfman usually had the capability to adapt to everything and anything. "Really? Why?"

"There was this weird thing digging into my back," he explained. "All night. I couldn't sleep."

"Really? Why didn't you tell me? I could've traded with you."

Her brother laughed. "Don't even go there, big sis. I'm a man!"

Mira shook her head and just continued walking.

Behind the siblings, in a group of trees, crouched a man. A man who was completely miserable.

His name, as you may have guessed, was Gaston.

Contrary to popular belief, Gaston was actually in possession of a brain (yes, really), and after running Mira and her siblings out of the village, he began to rethink his decision. After all, he couldn't have Mira if he got rid of her, right? So, as he (not so wisely) decided to do, he followed them out of the village and was currently facing a serious dilemma.

What the heck was he supposed to do now that he'd followed them into the middle of nowhere?

A person of average intellect would have spotted this gaping hole in the plan the instant it was formed, but Gaston wasn't exactly of average intellect. (Hey, I said he had a brain. I never said it wasn't a puny one.) Which meant that Gaston was reduced to the role of stalker, just blindly following the siblings with no real idea of what he was doing or where he was supposed to be going with this.

Gaston? Not the brightest color in the spectrum.

He was tired of walking (because contrary to popular belief, his muscles were due to him using a magic spell he'd found somewhere on himself, not actual working out). He was hungry (because, being the idiot you all now know he is, he hadn't thought to bring any food with him.) He was also mad.

But not at himself, oh no. Gaston adored himself way too much for that. (Which was the reason his father never really allowed him to come into close contact with mirrors or ponds – he didn't want his son meeting the same fate as Narcissus. Which was a very real possibility, by the way.) He was angry at the forest.

Yes, the forest. Why? Because it was there.

… I probably don't have to remind you again of Gaston's approximate IQ.

Anyway, Gaston was busy being miserable when out of nowhere, the siblings stopped.

He found out the reason why the second after.

A huge, hairy wolf stepped out of the trees in front of Mira, giving her a very, very scary smile. With lots of yellow teeth and dripping saliva.

"Well, well, well," he purred, which is really more a cat thing if you think about it – but let's not go there. "Look at what I've found."

Even more wolves slid out of the trees, the closest appearing three feet away from Gaston. He promptly fainted. (Gaston, not the wolf.)

"Dinner?" one of them asked hopefully.

"Dinner," the first wolf, who was apparently the alpha, confirmed.

Elfman and Lisanna were almost peeing themselves from fear (actually, there was a suspicious-looking puddle near Elfman already), but Mira didn't even bat an eye.

"Excuse me," she said politely. "May we get through?"

The head wolf threw back his head and laughed. The rest of the pack followed, a ringing, awful sound that echoed through the trees and in the Strauss siblings' bones.

Now there was suspicious-looking puddle near Lisanna, too.

"At least this one's polite," the head wolf growled, leering at them. "I like my dinner to have at least some manners. Just for that, I'll do you the honor of allowing you to know my name. I am Hades."

"Mirajane Strauss, and these are my siblings, Elfman and Lisanna," Mira replied, much too calmly in the opinion of everyone but herself and the wolves.

"How adorable. Tell me, Mirajane, would you rather be roasted, or eaten whole?"

"I'd prefer none," she replied, and kneed him in the stomach.

That's right. Mirajane Strauss just kneed a seven-foot tall wolf in the stomach.

_And he actually went down._

Her siblings gawked in complete disbelief.

"And I thought her judo-flipping Laxus was epic," Elfman commented faintly.

His younger sister nodded mutely.

Gaston just lay there. Because, you know, he was still unconscious.

Hades also lay there. But not because he was unconscious. Because he was trying to figure out what in the name of sugar had just happened to him.

Mira stood over him, still smiling. "Well, I'm afraid we really must be on our way. It was nice meeting you, Hades."

"Not so fast," the wolf hissed, leaping to his feet. "Get them."

Which the wolf pack, having snapped out of the shock of seeing their leader go down by now, was all too happy to do.

Okay, we've established that Mira is the most epic person at fighting, like, ever by now. But even she couldn't take down an entire pack of seven-foot wolves.

(And one six feet and eleven inches, but he's not important right now.)

The point is, since Gaston wasn't going to snap out of Slumberland anytime soon, the Strauss siblings were actually pretty much screwed.

Until, of course, a gigantic…_thing _decided that it would be a good time to explode out of the trees and save their lives.

Which it was. A good time, I mean.

Elfman, Mira, and Lisanna watched openmouthed as the new guy proceeded to pummel the wolf pack like they'd never been pummeled before.

All Lisanna could say was, "Sweet cupcakes."

Elfman blinked. "Hey, isn't that…"

Mira stepped forward and silently began assisting him in the wolf decimation.

"It _is," _Elfman gasped.

Yup. That's right.

The new guy who'd shown up in the nick of time to save their butts was none other than Laxus.

"What made you decide to come after us?" Mira called to him, socking a wolf in the face.

Laxus paused in choking the wolf in front of him. His mind shot back to thirty minutes ago.

_"Laxus, why'd you have to kick them out?" Bixlow whined. "They were fun!"_

_"Shut up, Bixlow. Unless you want to die."_

_"That girl could've helped break the curse," Freed fumed. "And you completely screwed it all up!"_

_"I don't need any girl to help break my curse!"_

_"Yes, you do! Unless you feel like falling in love with someone who's not a girl, in which case I say…ew."_

_"Shut up, Freed."_

_"I will not shut up! In fact, I insist that you march right out there this instant and ask the girl to come back!"_

_"Or what? What're you going to do to me?"_

_Evergreen stepped in, letting out a sigh. "You boys are ridiculous."_

_She turned to Laxus, and the look in her eyes was enough to freak even him out. "Laxus, here's the deal: You get out there and bring her back, or else I'm putting those pictures of you on Handpage. You know which ones."_

_Laxux's jaw dropped. "You wouldn't."_

_Oh, yes, she would. "You wanna test that theory?"_

_"You're evil.'_

_"Not evil," the feather duster replied casually. "Just desperate. I do want my beautiful face back, you know."_

_"I hate you."_

_"Shoo, shoo, Laxus. Don't you have a girl to catch?"_

_Laxus opened his mouth to reply, but just let out a huffy sigh and stomped toward the door. The instant he was gone, both Freed and Bixlow stared at Evergreen as if she'd grown apples out of her head._

_"How in the world did you _do _that?!"_

Laxus's brain snapped back to reality. "Um. No reason. I just changed my mind."

"Well then." Mira slammed her foot into the last standing wolf's face. "Thank you."

"You're…uh…you're welcome."

She smiled at him, and out of nowhere, he smiled back.

The smile lasted only a second, of course, before Laxus realized what he was doing and scowled.

Mira just laughed.

xXx

"Lyon?!"

Gray stared at his brother in absolute disbelief. "What in the world are you doing here?"

But then again, he shouldn't have been so surprised. Lyon had a way of ruining everything, after all.

"I decided to come early!" he announced. "Surprise!"

Gray's mouth hung open. He didn't reply. Mostly because he was busy thinking one thing over and over again.

_LYON YOU MORON!_

"Gray, are you all right? You're looking pale."

Gray just stared at him. "You're not supposed to be here."

"Yes, I think we've already established that I decided to come a day early."

"You're not supposed to be here."

"Gray, you're repeating yourself. Are you quite sure you're all right?"

"You're not supposed to be here."

"Okaaaay. So, who's the party for?"

"You're not supposed to be here."

Fortunately, Lyon was saved from answering when Juvia (that was the name she'd scrawled on a piece of paper for them) stepped out onto the deck, having washed up for dinner.

Actually, it really wasn't all that fortunate. Because then, Lyon's jaw dropped.

Gray had had a terrible feeling about this visit, and those feelings were immediately confirmed when Lyon dashed across the deck, falling to his knees and crying out, "Be my bride, please!"

Juvia stared at him as if he were deranged. Which, in Gray's opinion, was a pretty accurate description as far as his brother was concerned.

And then it got worse. Lyon attempted to recite _poetry._

"Your eyes, my dear, are as beautiful as the moon! Come with me and leave Gray! He's an ignorant buffoon!"

Under normal circumstances, Gray would've slapped him – but then again, these circumstances could hardly be called normal. So he was reduced to staring and saying in a dazed voice, "He's gone _insane_."

Luckily, one of the pirates was actually thinking straight. He got up on one of the tables and screamed, "RUN, MISS!"

Juvia started staring at _him _as if he were insane. Which was really quite unfair, seeing as Lyon was the one who'd just done the whole roses-are-red-violets-are-blue routine.

Gray sighed and began striding forward, determined to solve this mess somehow – only he slipped on a piece of…_whatever_ the pirate had kicked off the table in his haste to warn Juvia of the terrible danger known as Lyon. He epically fell flat on his face.

Which was actually pretty painful, to tell you the truth. But not as painful as Lyon cracking up.

"You're so uncoordinated!" he cackled. "How you can even be a pirate captain is beyond me!"

"Shut up, Lyon," Gray growled – but someone stepped in front of him, and then there was a hand in front of his face.

Juvia helped him up without a single smile, which Gray would be eternally grateful for. He flashed her a grateful smile to show this, and she immediately…passed out.

Gray stared at her as she hit the ground. "What the – "

"My darling!" Lyon cried dramatically.

"Uh," Gray said, staring at the fallen girl in front of him. "Hey, Wendy! We need you over here!"

But Wendy did not come.

"Wendy? Hello?"

Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted Carla. "Hey, Carla! Where'd Wendy go?"

The white cat jumped. "O-Oh! Wendy? E-Er… She's…in the bathroom!"

"Oh. Could you go and tell her we need her?"

"A-All right! Sure!" Carla gave a nervous laugh and flew away.

Gray blinked. "What was that all about?"

Lyon chose that moment to cry out, "MY DARLING! PLEASE AWAKEN! YOU HAVEN'T EVEN GIVEN ME A REPLY YET!"

Gray stared at his brother, trying to resist the urge to smack him in the face. It wasn't easy. "You don't even know her _name."_

"Love bypasses the realm of names!" Lyon declared dramatically.

Gray groaned.

How in the world did he even get himself into these messes?

* * *

><p><strong>All right.<strong>

**I'm a terrible person.**

**I know.**

**A late update and a short one all in a row? I'M SO SORRY YOU GUYS MUST HATE ME SORRY SORRY SORRY.**

**And I know this isn't really enough to make up for it, but HAVE AN EXTRA LONG CHAPTER JUST BECAUSE.**

**And to my awesome reviewers:**

**Digi-fanCatt: Wendy: Oops, sorry, gotta go.**

**Romeo: ):**

**AlexuPenguin: And you would've guessed right! **

**I know, I know, it's a brilliant name (bows).**

**Bookworms will rule the world: Jellal, go take a time out.**

**Ultear be evil.**

**I wish Romeo would've just stepped out from under the tower and been like, "You blind?"**

**Yup, Miraxus! (Don't you love it when it spellchecks and then says it's spelled wrong?)**

**crystalgolem248: Ah, thank you!**

**crimson sana: Ultear is a very sneaky lady.**

**Lyon does epic appear moment.**

**Lucy Levy friendship coming soooooon.**

**Here's the next chapter!**

**Canadian Aspiring Author: Oh, is it really? Thank you!**

**thefourteenthdarkone: (Grabs bucket of water) AH NO SOMEONE'S ON FIRE HELP WHY IS NO ONE HELPING ME**

**Commander Akbar, if I remember correctly (not really sure about the spelling and stuff…)**

**camacazi1: ERRRRRZZZZZAAAAAAA!**

**And this is what's happening on the ship. Poor Gray.**

**YaoiFanaticFreak: Jellal? Well, kinda.**

**NutsieDreamer: Life can be both a jerk and a smiley face.**

**Ultear is totally screwed. Jellal is a damsel in distress. (Can anyone else see him wearing the dress at the wedding?)**

**Juvia: LOVE RIVAL EPIC STOMP! (stomps out ship-killers) Juvia is actually kind of a shipper's dream.**

**The name is very original, yes.**

**PhantomPierce-Okamoto: ERZA RUN AWAY RIGHT NOW!**

**Actually, Gray, you run too. Considering what's going on on your ship right now.**

**theradioactivephoenix: Oh, thank you! And that is a crazy acronym, seeing as the chapter's title was what it was…**

**SashaMonroe: Thank you!**

**Smile for the potato: Lyon's here! And oh…uh… Because a cliffhanger seemed appropriate?**

**meow goes a cat: Unless you're Ultear, of course.**

**Well, you'll see. Lucy and Levy friendship coming soon. (Maybe next chapter if I can fit it in.) STIYU HAS NOT BEEN FORGOTTEN, DO NOT WORRY, NYA!**

**Maria: Continuing!**

**Animal: Oh no, definitely not.**

**You saw how he reacted, hahaha.**

**Hmm… Yeah, if you squuuuiiiiinnnntt…**

**Louise Z: I shall!**

**And with that done…(gasp) I'm gonna go…(gasp) take a break from typing…**

**Water, ooooooooooooooooooooooo (falls asleep on top of keyboard)**


End file.
